REVIEW article
Front. Mol. Neurosci.
Sec. Brain Disease Mechanisms
Structure and function of neurovascular unit in arterial hypertension
Provisionally accepted
- Laboratory of Preclinical Research and Environmental Agents, Mossakowski Medical Research Institute, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
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Arterial hypertension is considered a main risk factor for cognitive impairment and stroke. Although chronic hypertension leads to adaptive changes in the lager cerebral blood vessels which should protect the downstream microvessels, profound changes in the structure and function of cerebral microcirculation were reported in this disease. The structural changes lead to dysregulation of the neurovascular unit and manifest themselves in particular as endothelial dysfunction, disruption of the blood-brain barrier and impairment of neurovascular coupling. The impairment of neurovascular coupling results in inadequate functional hyperemia, which in turn may lead to cognitive decline and dementia. In this review the effects of chronic arterial hypertension on the essential components of neurovascular unit involved in neurovascular coupling such as endothelial cells, astrocytes and pericytes are discussed.
Keywords: Astrocytes, endothelial glycocalyx, Endothelium, Glymphatic system, Hypertension, neurovascular coupling, Pericytes
Received: 28 Sep 2025; Accepted: 15 Dec 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Koźniewska and Aleksandrowicz. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Marta Aleksandrowicz
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