Pedro A. Jose: Searching for genes that cause the increase in blood pressure with large salt (NaCl) intake

Abstract

From a global perspective, essential hypertension has become a modern-day scourge of pandemic proportions. Essential hypertension—which manifests as an abnormal and sustained elevation of blood pressure—is a major risk factor for death and disability from heart disease, stroke and kidney failure. It represents an enormous economic burden, with the cost of health care and prevention running into billions of dollars annually. Of the estimated billion individuals afflicted worldwide, approximately half are unaware of their condition and, among those with diagnosed hypertension, less than half are properly controlled with drug therapy. Thus, the identification of environmental risk factors and elucidation of the molecular and genetic underpinnings of essential hypertension have been rigorously pursued for decades by many investigators, with Dr. Pedro A. Jose at the forefront, among others.