Differential Effect of Urotensin II on Vascular Tone in Normal Subjects and Patients with Chronic Heart Failure

Abstract

Background-Urotensin II (U-II) is a novel vasoactive peptide that also has direct hypertrophic and profibrotic effects on the myocardium. Upregulation of U-II and its receptor has been observed within the heart of patients with chronic heart failure (CHF). Furthermore, plasma levels of U-II have been found to be elevated in some but not all studies in such patients. However, the functional consequences of activation of the U-II system in patients with CHF, assessed by direct administration of exogenous U-II, have not been previously determined. Methods and Results-We compared the effect of iontophoresed U-II on skin microvascular tone in normal subjects and patients with CHF, assessed with t..