Results from a recent study have revealed a close relationship between pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)—a rare and deadly disease characterized by exceedingly high blood pressure in the arteries carrying blood from the heart to the lungs—and abnormalities of the blood-forming cells in the bone marrow (known as myeloid abnormalities). The study, which was conducted by a team of researchers at the Cleveland Clinic and Vanderbilt University, showed that blood progenitor cells (cells that are capable of forming white blood cells, red blood cells, or platelets in the bone marrow and are reported to affect blood vessel formation), are increased in the bone marrow, blood, and lungs of patients with PAH. These findings suggest that the disease processes in the bone marrow and the lungs are related. “This research pieces together a number of previous studies and observations suggesting a very close relationship between PAH and underlying bone marrow abnormalities,” said Dr. Serpil Erzurum, a co-author of the study and Chair of the Department of Pathobiology at the Cleveland Clinic. “Our study honed in on the stem cells involved in blood vessel maintenance to identify factors that might be involved in bone marrow stem cell abnormalities as well as progressive arterial disease.”
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