Inflammation articles within Nature Reviews Cardiology

Featured

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, the authors discuss the receptors, ligands and interactors that regulate immune cell recruitment in atherosclerosis, describe mechanisms that promote the resolution of inflammation in atherosclerotic lesions, and highlight potential strategies to target these pathways for the treatment of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.

    • Yvonne Döring
    • , Emiel P. C. van der Vorst
    •  & Christian Weber

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, van Leent and colleagues provide an overview of current PET imaging approaches for assessment of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, as well as of whole-body PET applications; discuss the link between imaging readouts and atherosclerotic plaque pathology; and highlight promising developments in PET systems and radiotracer synthesis.

    • Alexander Maier
    • , Abraham J. P. Teunissen
    •  & Mandy M. T. van Leent

  • Journal Club |

    Shoaran and Maffia recount how our understanding of the role of inflammation in atherosclerosis has evolved and highlight the study by Göran Hansson and colleagues that provided the first hint of the involvement of the adaptive immune response in atherosclerosis.

    • Mohsen Shoaran
    •  & Pasquale Maffia

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Fredman and Serhan discuss the role of specialized pro-resolving mediators, a superfamily of endogenous signalling lipids that mediate resolution of inflammation processes in atherosclerosis, and appraise the therapeutic potential of specialized pro-resolving mediators for the prevention and treatment of atherosclerosis, and the resolution of uncontrolled vascular inflammation.

    • Gabrielle Fredman
    •  & Charles N. Serhan

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Guzik and colleagues discuss immune and inflammatory mechanisms of hypertension, including upstream regulators and downstream effectors as well as the complex interplay between the immune system, blood pressure regulation and end-organ damage, which can help to identify new targets for therapeutic interventions.

    • Tomasz J. Guzik
    • , Ryszard Nosalski
    •  & Grant R. Drummond

  • Review Article |

    The NLRP3 inflammasome can sense cardiac ischaemic and non-ischaemic injury, amplify the inflammatory response and induce inflammatory cell death. In this Review, Toldo and Abbate describe the role of the NLRP3 inflammasome in numerous cardiac pathologies and summarize evidence on the use of agents targeting the NLRP3 inflammasome and related cytokines.

    • Stefano Toldo
    •  & Antonio Abbate

  • Research Highlight |

    Two studies now report that TET2-driven clonal haematopoiesis of indeterminate potential (CHIP) is associated with poor prognosis in patients with heart failure (HF) and preserved ejection fraction and that DNMT3A CHIP driver mutations promote dysregulated gene expression profiles that are associated with inflammation in monocytes in the setting of HF.

    • Karina Huynh

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, the authors discuss the clinical and experimental data on immunomodulatory effects of evidence-based treatments for heart failure and their primary mechanisms of action, and highlight potential therapeutic targets and opportunities for the development and application of novel immunomodulatory treatments for heart failure.

    • George Markousis-Mavrogenis
    • , Lukas Baumhove
    •  & Peter van der Meer

  • Research Highlight |

    A new study reveals that the disrupted sleep patterns that are frequently observed in patients with cardiac disease are driven by immune-mediated sympathetic denervation and dysfunction of the pineal gland, which leads to a decrease in the circulating levels of melatonin and subsequent sleep disruption.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Ntusi and colleagues examine the mechanistic links between dysbiosis of the oral microbiome and the pathogenesis of cardiovascular diseases, and explore potential strategies for prevention and treatment.

    • Andrea Tonelli
    • , Evelyn N. Lumngwena
    •  & Ntobeko A. B. Ntusi

  • Research Highlight |

    Cytotoxic CD8+ T cells specific for the cardiac protein α-myosin heavy chain have a key role in immune-checkpoint-inhibitor-associated myocarditis, according to a study published in Nature.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Research Highlight |

    Some clinical observations suggest that female patients are more susceptible to myocarditis induced by immune-checkpoint-inhibitor therapies. A new study recapitulates this female predisposition in mice and provides mechanistic and biological plausibility, and suggests that hormone therapy could help to treat myocarditis by promoting the expression of MANF, a protein related to the unfolded protein response.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, the authors provide an overview of the immune cells involved in atherosclerosis, discuss preclinical research and published and ongoing clinical trials assessing the therapeutic potential of targeting the immune system in atherosclerosis, highlight emerging therapeutic targets from preclinical studies and identify challenges for successful clinical translation.

    • Suzanne E. Engelen
    • , Alice J. B. Robinson
    •  & Claudia Monaco

  • Comment |

    The risk of acute myocarditis associated with COVID-19 mRNA vaccination has garnered intense (social) media attention. However, myocarditis after COVID-19 mRNA vaccination is rare and usually resolves within days or weeks. Moreover, the risks of hospitalization and death associated with COVID-19 are greater than the risk associated with COVID-19 vaccination. Therefore, COVID-19 vaccination should be recommended in adolescents and adults.

    • Stephane Heymans
    •  & Leslie T. Cooper

  • Research Highlight |

    A new study shows that anti-IL-1β treatment and NLRP3 inflammasome inhibition ameliorate vascular inflammation and atherosclerosis progression by two mechanisms: a reduction in blood inflammatory leukocyte supply and a decrease in inflammatory leukocyte uptake into atherosclerotic lesions.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Research Highlight |

    Mice deficient in type 2 innate lymphoid cells have a greater accumulation of inflammatory macrophages and poorer cardiac function after myocardial infarction compared with control mice, indicating a role for this subset of lymphocytes in regulating inflammatory pathways in the injured heart.

    • Karina Huynh

  • Research Highlight |

    A new randomized clinical trial shows that tocilizumab, a monoclonal antibody that inhibits IL-6 signalling by binding to the IL-6 receptor, increases myocardial salvage in patients with acute ST-segment elevation myocardial infarction who undergo myocardial revascularization with percutaneous coronary intervention.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Research Highlight |

    Antihypertensive therapy, particularly with the use of an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, improves outcomes in patients with hypertension and SARS-CoV-2 infection, who are susceptible to hyperinflammation and severe outcomes with COVID-19.

    • Gregory B. Lim

  • Research Highlight |

    In patients with recurrent pericarditis, treatment with rilonacept, an engineered fusion protein that acts as an IL-1 trap, leads to a rapid resolution of recurrent pericarditis episodes and reduces the risk of pericarditis recurrence.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Review Article |

    This Review summarizes the latest evidence indicating that platelet and endothelial dysfunction are essential components of COVID-19 pathology, describes the potential mechanisms underlying the contribution of cardiovascular risk factors to the most severe outcomes in COVID-19, and highlights the roles of coagulopathy, thrombocytopathy and endotheliopathy in COVID-19 pathogenesis.

    • Sean X. Gu
    • , Tarun Tyagi
    •  & John Hwa

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Tschöpe and colleagues summarize and evaluate the available evidence on the pathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment of myocarditis and inflammatory cardiomyopathy, with special focus on virus-induced and virus-associated myocarditis. The authors also identify knowledge gaps, appraise available experimental models and propose future directions for the field.

    • Carsten Tschöpe
    • , Enrico Ammirati
    •  & Sophie Van Linthout

  • Review Article |

    Chronic liver disease can promote the development of numerous cardiac disorders and circulatory complications. In this Review, Pacher and colleagues describe some of the extrahepatic complications of chronic liver disease and their shared pathophysiological mechanisms, including inflammation and oxidative stress.

    • Csaba Matyas
    • , György Haskó
    •  & Pal Pacher

  • Research Highlight |

    Anti-inflammatory therapy with low-dose colchicine reduces the risk of cardiovascular events by 31% compared with placebo in patients with chronic coronary artery disease, according to findings from the LoDoCo2 trial presented at the ESC Congress 2020.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Tyrrell and Goldstein discuss vascular intrinsic and extrinsic mechanisms of how ageing promotes atherosclerosis, including changes in myeloid cells, mitochondrial dysfunction, impaired mitophagy and elevated IL-6 levels. They propose future steps for research and potential therapeutic approaches for age-related atherosclerosis.

    • Daniel J. Tyrrell
    •  & Daniel R. Goldstein

  • Research Highlight |

    A new biomimetic drug delivery system consisting of nanoparticles that are coated with macrophage membrane and responsive to reactive oxygen species enables targeted pharmacotherapy for atherosclerosis in mice while also suppressing local inflammation by sequestering inflammatory factors.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Research Highlight |

    A new study shows that regulatory T cells have essential roles in atherosclerotic plaque regression by promoting the resolution of plaque inflammation through suppression of macrophage and T cell pro-inflammatory responses and induction of a pro-resolving macrophage phenotype.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Review Article |

    NSAIDs are effective, widely used analgesics, but their use is associated with increased risks of thrombosis and heart failure. In this Review, the authors assess the cardiovascular safety of NSAIDs and present an approach for their use in the holistic management of pain.

    • Anne-Marie Schjerning
    • , Patricia McGettigan
    •  & Gunnar Gislason

  • Review Article |

    Accumulating evidence supports the critical role of T cells as drivers and modifiers of atherosclerosis. In this Review, Ley and colleagues describe the latest advances in our understanding of the role of T cell subsets in atherosclerosis, discuss the process of T cell homing to atherosclerotic plaques and highlight potential T cell-related therapies for atherosclerosis.

    • Ryosuke Saigusa
    • , Holger Winkels
    •  & Klaus Ley

  • Research Highlight |

    A surgical mouse model of recurrent myocardial infarction (MI) developed by inducing two sequential MIs in different regions of the same mouse revealed that haematopoietic and innate immune responses are shaped by a preceding MI.

    • Karina Huynh

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Soehnlein and colleagues discuss the role of neutrophils in cardiovascular inflammation and repair, describing the effect of cardiovascular risk factors on neutrophil production and function, appraising the contribution of neutrophils to the different stages of atherosclerosis and its clinical manifestations, and highlighting the evolving therapeutic strategies for targeting neutrophil numbers, functional status and effector mechanisms.

    • Carlos Silvestre-Roig
    • , Quinte Braster
    •  & Oliver Soehnlein

  • Review Article |

    Inflammation has an important role in the pathogenesis of acute and chronic heart failure. This Review summarizes the latest findings on the role of the innate and adaptive immune systems in the pathogenesis of heart failure, and highlights the results of phase III clinical trials of therapies targeting inflammatory processes in this condition, such as anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory strategies.

    • Luigi Adamo
    • , Cibele Rocha-Resende
    •  & Douglas L. Mann

  • Research Highlight |

    A new study shows that regular physical activity exerts cardiovascular beneficial effects by reducing the proliferation of haematopoietic stem and progenitor cells via modulation of their niche, leading to a reduction in the systemic supply of inflammatory leukocytes.

    • Irene Fernández-Ruiz

  • Research Highlight |

    Platelets have atherogenic effects by inducing monocyte migration and recruitment into atherosclerotic plaques and skewing macrophages to a pro-inflammatory phenotype.

    • Gregory B. Lim

  • Review Article |

    This Review summarizes the role of transcription factors and epigenetic remodelling in modulating macrophage plasticity, provides an overview of the cooperative action of transcription factors and epigenetic modifiers controlling macrophage activation in the context of atherosclerosis and inflammation, and highlights the therapeutic potential of modulating transcription factor activity.

    • Tatyana Kuznetsova
    • , Koen H. M. Prange
    •  & Menno P. J. de Winther

  • Research Highlight |

    The transcription factor FOXP1 downregulates activation of the endothelial NLRP3 inflammasome and suppresses vascular inflammation, protecting against atherosclerosis. Upregulation of FOXP1 expression is a novel anti-atherogenic effect of simvastatin.

    • Gregory B. Lim

Browse broader subjects

Browse narrower subjects

Browse Inflammation across other nature.com journals