Sex-Specific Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Protective Effects of AMPK in Cardiovascular Diseases
Cardiovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease, heart failure, or stroke are the most common cause of death worldwide and are regularly based on risk factors like diabetes mellitus, hypertension, or obesity. At the same time, both diseases and risk factors are significantly influenced by sex...
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MDPI AG
2025-05-01
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| Series: | Antioxidants |
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| author | Lea Strohm Dominika Mihalikova Alexander Czarnowski Zita Schwaibold Andreas Daiber Paul Stamm |
| author_facet | Lea Strohm Dominika Mihalikova Alexander Czarnowski Zita Schwaibold Andreas Daiber Paul Stamm |
| author_sort | Lea Strohm |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Cardiovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease, heart failure, or stroke are the most common cause of death worldwide and are regularly based on risk factors like diabetes mellitus, hypertension, or obesity. At the same time, both diseases and risk factors are significantly influenced by sex hormones. In order to better understand this influence and also specifically improve the therapy of female patients, medical research has recently focused increasingly on gender-specific differences. The goal is to develop personalized, gender-specific therapy concepts for these diseases to further enhance health outcomes. The enzyme adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a central regulator of energy metabolism, protecting the cardiovascular system from energy depletion, thereby promoting vascular health and preventing cellular damage. AMPK confers cardioprotective effects by preventing endothelial and vascular dysfunction, and by controlling or regulating oxidative stress and inflammatory processes. For AMPK, sex-specific effects were reported, influencing metabolic and cardiovascular responses. Exercise and metabolic stress generally cause higher AMPK activity in males. At the same time, females exhibit protective mechanisms against insulin resistance or oxidative stress, particularly in conditions like obesity. Additionally, males subject to AMPK deficiency seem to experience greater cardiac and mitochondrial dysfunction. In contrast, females show improvement in cardiovascular function after pharmacological AMPK activation. These differences, influenced by hormones, body composition, and gene expression, highlight the potential to develop personalized, sex-specific AMPK-targeted therapeutic strategies for cardiovascular diseases in the future. Here, we discuss the most actual scientific background, focusing on the protective, gender-specific effects of AMPK, and highlight potential clinical applications. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c9a99eb0d5f24beda05877bdbf4abe6b |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2076-3921 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-05-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
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| series | Antioxidants |
| spelling | doaj-art-c9a99eb0d5f24beda05877bdbf4abe6b2025-08-20T03:14:39ZengMDPI AGAntioxidants2076-39212025-05-0114561510.3390/antiox14050615Sex-Specific Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Protective Effects of AMPK in Cardiovascular DiseasesLea Strohm0Dominika Mihalikova1Alexander Czarnowski2Zita Schwaibold3Andreas Daiber4Paul Stamm5Department of Cardiology, Cardiology I, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University, 55131 Mainz, GermanyDepartment of Cardiology, Cardiology I, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University, 55131 Mainz, GermanyDepartment of Cardiology, Cardiology I, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University, 55131 Mainz, GermanyDepartment of Cardiology, Cardiology I, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University, 55131 Mainz, GermanyDepartment of Cardiology, Cardiology I, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University, 55131 Mainz, GermanyDepartment of Cardiology, Cardiology I, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg-University, 55131 Mainz, GermanyCardiovascular diseases such as coronary heart disease, heart failure, or stroke are the most common cause of death worldwide and are regularly based on risk factors like diabetes mellitus, hypertension, or obesity. At the same time, both diseases and risk factors are significantly influenced by sex hormones. In order to better understand this influence and also specifically improve the therapy of female patients, medical research has recently focused increasingly on gender-specific differences. The goal is to develop personalized, gender-specific therapy concepts for these diseases to further enhance health outcomes. The enzyme adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a central regulator of energy metabolism, protecting the cardiovascular system from energy depletion, thereby promoting vascular health and preventing cellular damage. AMPK confers cardioprotective effects by preventing endothelial and vascular dysfunction, and by controlling or regulating oxidative stress and inflammatory processes. For AMPK, sex-specific effects were reported, influencing metabolic and cardiovascular responses. Exercise and metabolic stress generally cause higher AMPK activity in males. At the same time, females exhibit protective mechanisms against insulin resistance or oxidative stress, particularly in conditions like obesity. Additionally, males subject to AMPK deficiency seem to experience greater cardiac and mitochondrial dysfunction. In contrast, females show improvement in cardiovascular function after pharmacological AMPK activation. These differences, influenced by hormones, body composition, and gene expression, highlight the potential to develop personalized, sex-specific AMPK-targeted therapeutic strategies for cardiovascular diseases in the future. Here, we discuss the most actual scientific background, focusing on the protective, gender-specific effects of AMPK, and highlight potential clinical applications.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3921/14/5/615AMPKsex-specific differencesoxidative stressantioxidantcardiovascular diseases |
| spellingShingle | Lea Strohm Dominika Mihalikova Alexander Czarnowski Zita Schwaibold Andreas Daiber Paul Stamm Sex-Specific Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Protective Effects of AMPK in Cardiovascular Diseases Antioxidants AMPK sex-specific differences oxidative stress antioxidant cardiovascular diseases |
| title | Sex-Specific Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Protective Effects of AMPK in Cardiovascular Diseases |
| title_full | Sex-Specific Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Protective Effects of AMPK in Cardiovascular Diseases |
| title_fullStr | Sex-Specific Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Protective Effects of AMPK in Cardiovascular Diseases |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sex-Specific Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Protective Effects of AMPK in Cardiovascular Diseases |
| title_short | Sex-Specific Antioxidant and Anti-Inflammatory Protective Effects of AMPK in Cardiovascular Diseases |
| title_sort | sex specific antioxidant and anti inflammatory protective effects of ampk in cardiovascular diseases |
| topic | AMPK sex-specific differences oxidative stress antioxidant cardiovascular diseases |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3921/14/5/615 |
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