Role of the sympathetic nervous system in cardiac remodeling in hypertension.

The role of the sympathetic nervous system in the settings of cardiac hypertrophy is postulated on the basis of experimental and clinical evidence. Only recently, the intimate mechanisms underlying hypertrophic responses of cardiac cell have been explored. Recent evidence spots the role of adrenergic receptors in the activation of several intracellular pathways of signaling that lead to nuclear responses of myocardiocyte. The molecular structures involved in these pathways may represent novel targets of future therapeutic interventions for cardiac hypertrophy and vascular remodeling in hypertension.