VISFATIN AND CARDIOVASCULAR PROTECTION

Abstract

In cardiovascular diseases, visfatin was initially proposed as a marker of atherosclerosis, endothelial dysfunction, and vascular damage. Objectives: we try to elucidate the relationship between visfatin and cardiovascular diseases as different controversial studies about visfatin role were found. Data sources: we summarized the contents of 251 research and review articles from different web sites till 31 January 2013. Summary of content of the article: in this review, we summarized the role of visfatin in different cardiovascular diseases and we explain the mechanism of action in different conditions. We discussed the relationship between visfatin, obesity and cardiovascular functions as this triad is considered in different situations. Moreover, we discussed the effect of visfatin on blood pressure and the potential role of visfatin in blood pressure control. We also mentioned briefly the role of visfatin in pre-eclampsia. In addition, we discussed in more details the role of visfatin in cardioprotection and the mechanism of action. Finally we summarized the role of visfatin in renin angiotensin system and its potential usage in clinical pharmacology. Conclusion: we found that visfatin has a great beneficial effect in protecting the heart in different situations as well as its relaxing effect on blood vessels is of great value in hypertension. We also concluded that visfatin has a lipid lowering effect in different situations including metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes mellitus. The role of visfatin in cardiovascular diseases could be implemented in clinical drug therapy which need further human studies.