February 2014

DZHK investigators working with Prof. Heimo Ehmke and Dr. Anika Seniuk at the Hamburg/Kiel/Lübeck partner site in cooperation with research teams led by Prof. Christian Hübner in Jena and Dr. Björn Schröder in Berlin have identified the calcium-activated chloride ion channel TMEM16A as a potential target for the treatment of hypertension. In cells of the vascular wall, TMEM16A regulates the outflow of chloride thus influencing the contractility of the vascular musculature. The researchers discovered that switching off this channel expands the blood vessels thereby causing a drop in blood pressure. Mice lacking TMEM15A in the vascular musculature had lower systemic blood pressure and a decreased hypertensive response following administration of angiotensin II, a hormone which causes the blood vessels to constrict.

Link to the Paper