Cited by 725Nitric Oxide and Endothelin EffectsCardiovascular Health and Disease PreventionCardiovascular and exercise physiology

Aging and vascular endothelial function in humans

Open access
Seals, Douglas R., Jablonski, Kristen L., Donato, Anthony J.·2011·Clinical Science

Abstract

Advancing age is the major risk factor for the development of CVD (cardiovascular diseases). This is attributable, in part, to the development of vascular endothelial dysfunction, as indicated by reduced peripheral artery EDD (endothelium-dependent dilation) in response to chemical [typically ACh (acetylcholine)] or mechanical (intravascular shear) stimuli. Reduced bioavailability of the endothelium-synthesized dilating molecule NO (nitric oxide) as a result of oxidative stress is the key mechanism mediating reduced EDD with aging. Vascular oxidative stress increases with age as a consequence of greater production of reactive oxygen species (e.g. superoxide) without a compensatory increase in antioxidant defences. Sources of increased superoxide production include up-regulation of the oxidant enzyme NADPH oxidase, uncoupling of the normally NO-producing enzyme, eNOS (endothelial NO synthase) (due to reduced availability of the cofactor tetrahydrobiopterin) and increased mitochondrial synthesis during oxidative phosphorylation. Increased bioactivity of the potent endothelial-derived constricting factor ET-1 (endothelin-1), reduced endothelial production of/responsiveness to dilatory prostaglandins, the development of vascular inflammation, formation of AGEs (advanced glycation end-products), an increased rate of endothelial apoptosis and reduced expression of oestrogen receptor α (in postmenopausal females) also probably contribute to impaired EDD with aging. Several lifestyle and biological factors modulate vascular endothelial function with aging, including regular aerobic exercise, dietary factors (e.g. processed compared with non-processed foods), body weight/fatness, vitamin D status, menopause/oestrogen deficiency and a number of conventional and non-conventional risk factors for CVD. Given the number of older adults now and in the future, more information is needed on effective strategies for the prevention and treatment of vascular endothelial aging.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1042/cs20100476

Cites

193 of 193 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

  • Age-related declines in endothelial function and NO bioavailability can impair neurovascular coupling, resulting in reduced cerebral perfusion and cognitive decline.

    “age-related declines in endothelial function and NO bioavailability can impair this process, resulting in reduced cerebral perfusion and cognitive decline [168,169].”

    From Dietary Nitrate-Rich Vegetables as Natural Modulators of Health: Mechanisms and Benefits in Ageing Populations (2026) · cites this paper as [168]

    The Summary and Conclusions (page not provided) links age-associated endothelial dysfunction to reduced NO bioavailability. The paper discusses peripheral vascular dilation, but the passages do not establish that these changes impair neurovascular coupling or lead to reduced cerebral perfusion and cognitive decline. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • This leads to peroxynitrite formation and endothelial damage.

    “which leads to peroxynitrite formation and endothelial damage [168,232].”

    From Dietary Nitrate-Rich Vegetables as Natural Modulators of Health: Mechanisms and Benefits in Ageing Populations (2026) · cites this paper as [168]

    The Oxidative stress section says superoxide could react with nitric oxide to form peroxynitrite, which oxidizes BH4 and may impair endothelium-dependent dilation. It also reports markers of oxidant damage in vascular endothelial cells, but does not establish the unqualified claim that this pathway leads to endothelial damage. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Ageing is associated with reduced eNOS activity, increased arginase activity, and enhanced oxidative degradation of NO.

    “Ageing is associated with reduced eNOS activity, increased arginase activity, and enhanced oxidative degradation of NO”

    From Dietary Nitrate-Rich Vegetables as Natural Modulators of Health: Mechanisms and Benefits in Ageing Populations (2026) · cites this paper as [168]

    The NO bioavailability and Oxidative stress sections support reduced NO availability with ageing and increased removal of NO by superoxide. But the NO bioavailability section reports increased eNOS phosphorylation in healthy older humans, suggesting greater—not reduced—enzyme activation. The ADMA and arginase section reports increased arginase activity in some ageing rat arteries, not a general finding in humans. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • Structural vascular changes (intimal thickening and reduced capillary density) can restrict NO signalling in advanced disease.

    “structural vascular changes (e.g., intimal thickening and reduced capillary density) can restrict NO signalling in advanced disease [168,244].”

    From Dietary Nitrate-Rich Vegetables as Natural Modulators of Health: Mechanisms and Benefits in Ageing Populations (2026) · cites this paper as [168]

    The NO bioavailability section reports reduced NO-mediated dilation with aging, but attributes it to altered NO production or removal, not structural vascular changes. Searches for intimal thickening, reduced capillary density, and related vascular-structure terms found no passage linking those changes to restricted NO signalling in advanced disease; our copy is not truncated. (LLM, conf=0.75)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
  • The compensatory nitrate-nitrite-NO pathway may be particularly important for older adults.

    “This compensatory pathway may be particularly important for older adults”

    From Dietary Nitrate-Rich Vegetables as Natural Modulators of Health: Mechanisms and Benefits in Ageing Populations (2026) · cites this paper as [168]

    The NO bioavailability section reports reduced NO availability with aging and suggests that increased eNOS activation may compensate for it. However, searches for nitrate, nitrite, and a compensatory nitrate–nitrite–NO pathway found no passage addressing whether that pathway is particularly important for older adults. (LLM, conf=0.75)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Seals, D. R., Jablonski, K. L., & Donato, A. J.
Affiliations
University of Colorado Boulder (US)
Venue
Clinical Science
Published
2011-01-18
Volume
120
Issue
9
Pages
357-375
ISSN
  • 0143-5221 (ISSN-L)
  • 1470-8736
OpenAlex
W1983986440
Cited by
725
References
191
Citations by year
2026: 63 · 2025: 49 · 2024: 45 · 2023: 52 · 2022: 66 · 2021: 58 · 2020: 48 · 2019: 49 · 2018: 49 · 2017: 39 · 2016: 44 · 2015: 46 · 2014: 35 · 2013: 28 · 2012: 40
FWCI
25.52
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Clinical Science (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Institute on Aging (AG022241, K01AG029337, AG031141, AG-006537, R01AG031141, AG 029337, F31AG033994, R01AG022241, AG-000279, R37AG013038, R01AG013038, R01AG040297, R01AG006537, AG-013038, AG033994, T32AG000279)
  • National Center for Research Resources (RR-00051, M01RR000051)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Nitric Oxide and Endothelin Effects
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Cardiovascular Health and Disease Prevention
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Complementary and alternative medicine › Cardiovascular and exercise physiology
Keywords
vascular aging, endothelial dysfunction, endothelium-dependent dilation, nitric oxide bioavailability, oxidative stress, superoxide, NADPH oxidase, endothelial nitric oxide synthase, tetrahydrobiopterin, endothelin-1, advanced glycation end products, vascular inflammation, endothelial cell apoptosis, estrogen receptor alpha, menopause, aerobic exercise, dietary factors, vitamin D, cardiovascular risk
MeSH terms
Aging, Cardiovascular Diseases, Endothelium, Vascular, Humans, Inflammation, Nitric Oxide, Vasodilation, Exercise, Oxidative Stress

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review