Investigation of a novel sympathetic vasomotor pathway

Funding Activity

Website
http://purl.org/au-research/grants/nhmrc/454594

Funding Status
Closed

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Funded Activity Summary

Blood pressure is regulated by sympathetic nerves to the heart and blood vessels, and it is believed that overactive sympathetic nerves contribute to many cases of hypertension. Overactive sympathetic nerves also contribute to, and worsen the disease process, in heart failure as well as other cardiovascular diseases. The regulation of sympathetic nerves is thus central to the understanding and treatment of cardiovascular disorders. The present proposal is specifically relevant to the hypertension which accompanies airway obstruction during sleep (obstructive sleep apnoea - OSA). We plan to study a novel class of sympathetic nerves ('accessory' sympathetic nerves), which are likely to be centrally involved in the hypertension of OSA, and probably also other conditions where sympathetic nerve activity is pathologically raised. 'Accessory' sympathetic nerves can cause a long-lasting amplification of the activity in the 'regular' sympathetic nerve pathway, enhancing its actions on the heart and blood vessels. The brain pathways that drive 'accessory' sympathetic nerves are essentially unknown. We seek to find out those pathways, study how they amplify the activity in the 'regular' pathway and explore their significance in an animal model of OSA. The outcomes of this study will be first, essential basic knowledge of a novel, but probably important, mechanism whereby the brain controls the cardiovascular system in health and disease. Second, the relevance of that mechanism to a specific type of neurogenic hypertension will have been defined.

Funded Activity Details

Start Date: 01-01-2007

End Date: 01-01-2009

Funding Scheme: NHMRC Project Grants

Funding Amount: $354,586.00

Funder: National Health and Medical Research Council

Research Topics

ANZSRC Field of Research (FoR)

Autonomic Nervous System

ANZSRC Socio-Economic Objective (SEO)

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Other Keywords

Hypertension | Sympathetic nervous system | autonomic nervous system disease | cardiorespiratory control | hypoxia | neurophysiology | sleep apnoea

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