The Resistance Arteries is focused on the general issue of the
regulatory pathways in resistance arteries and comprises a selection of
timely overviews and up-to-date research studies presented at the 4th
International Symposium on Resistance Arteries. These small vessels act
as major controllers of blood pressure, blood flow, and its
distribution, and are involved in a variety of pathological conditions.
Vascular diameter is influenced by a host of factors, some extrinsic to
the smooth musc1e cells and some intrinsic. One will find contributions
in nearly all of the five themes by which the book is organized; these
address intra-and extracellular interactions, and membrane receptor
pathways using vascular beds as diverse as the brain, he art, lung,
kidney, and skin. Basic physiological studies are inc1uded; these
examine: growth fac- tors, vasoactive endothelium-derived nitric oxide,
the impacts of flow and stretch, myogenic mechanisms, calcium regulation
by protein kinase C, and signal transduction pathways of the vascular
smooth musc1e cell membrane receptors. Not only are tissues from
appropriate animal models exploited in most of these reports, but many
reflect the current increase in the use of human tissue to elucidate
vascular alterations of function and morphology in hypertension,
atherosclerosis, and ischemia. Noteworthy among the many techniques used
are: membrane permeabilization with toxins, fura-2 for calcium
determination, single cell electrophysiology, and the application of
confocal microscopy to isolated, living vessels.
