Event Title
Hawthorn Extract: Viable Treatment for Cardiovascular Disease or Unscrupulous Herbal Supplement?
Presentation Type
Poster/Portfolio
Presenter Major(s)
Biomedical Sciences
Mentor Information
Francis Sylvester, sylvestf@gvsu.edu
Department
Biomedical Sciences
Location
Henry Hall Atrium 32
Start Date
13-4-2011 10:00 AM
End Date
13-4-2011 11:00 AM
Keywords
Health and Wellness, Health, Illness, and Healing, Life Science
Abstract
Hawthorn leaves, berries and flowers have been used to treat high blood pressure. It is hypothesized that Hawthorn extract acts as a vasodilator thus increasing the size of the lumen by relaxing the smooth muscle in the walls of blood vessels. This occurs by decreasing the amount of calcium present in the cytosol by increasing the effectiveness of the Ca2+-ATPase pump or by altering the Na+-Ca2+ exchanger. With this decrease in cytosolic calcium, the calcium unbinds from calmodulin causing myosin phosphatase to remove phosphate from the myosin thus causing the smooth muscle to relax. Arteries were dissected from porcine organs and mounted in organ baths coupled to force transducers. The commercially available Hawthorn extract used in these studies did not have a significant effect on coronary or pulmonary arteries. The denuded and intact coronary arteries exhibited a significant relaxation at higher concentrations which was likely due to the ethanol that was used in the extract.
Hawthorn Extract: Viable Treatment for Cardiovascular Disease or Unscrupulous Herbal Supplement?
Henry Hall Atrium 32
Hawthorn leaves, berries and flowers have been used to treat high blood pressure. It is hypothesized that Hawthorn extract acts as a vasodilator thus increasing the size of the lumen by relaxing the smooth muscle in the walls of blood vessels. This occurs by decreasing the amount of calcium present in the cytosol by increasing the effectiveness of the Ca2+-ATPase pump or by altering the Na+-Ca2+ exchanger. With this decrease in cytosolic calcium, the calcium unbinds from calmodulin causing myosin phosphatase to remove phosphate from the myosin thus causing the smooth muscle to relax. Arteries were dissected from porcine organs and mounted in organ baths coupled to force transducers. The commercially available Hawthorn extract used in these studies did not have a significant effect on coronary or pulmonary arteries. The denuded and intact coronary arteries exhibited a significant relaxation at higher concentrations which was likely due to the ethanol that was used in the extract.