# Sleep and Blood Pressure-Related Endothelial Abnormalities

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO · 2020 · $716,304

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Aside from age, elevated blood pressure is the most predominant cardiovascular disease risk factor worldwide.
In the United States it is estimated that ~60% of the adult population have elevated blood pressure in either the
prehypertensive (120-139/80-89 mmHg) or hypertensive (>140/90 mmHg) range. Both prehypertension
(particularly systolic BP >130 mmHg) and hypertension are associated with increased risk for myocardial
infarction, heart failure, stroke and vascular disease. Endothelial dysfunction is a major factor underlying the
increased risk of vascular events with elevated blood pressure. In addition, insufficient nightly sleep (<7 hr/night)
and poor sleep quality have been linked not only to the etiology of elevated blood pressure but are also a
prevalent, often ignored, comorbidity. Indeed, short sleep duration and/or poor sleep quality is now considered
to be a plausible risk factor for elevated blood pressure and a harbinger of increased cardiovascular risk. A high
prevalence of insufficient nightly sleep has been reported in hypertensive adults. Importantly, habitual sleep
duration of less than 7 hr/night is independently associated with an increased risk of stroke and coronary artery
disease. The influence of insufficient sleep on vascular endothelial function in adults with elevated blood
pressure is unknown. Moreover, given the emerging relation between sleep duration and quality and blood
pressure, sleep represents an important, and currently neglected, therapeutic target for improving vascular
health and, in turn, reducing cardiovascular risk in adults with elevated blood pressure. The present proposal
will test the following hypotheses: 1) that chronic insufficient sleep is associated with diminished endothelium-
dependent nitric oxide-mediated vasodilation and endothelial tissue-type plasminogen activator release in
adults with elevated blood pressure. Furthermore, the postulated diminishment in endothelial vasodilator and
fibrinolytic function with insufficient sleep will be due, at least in part, to increased oxidative stress; and 2)
increasing sleep duration and improving sleep quality (utilizing individualized targeted sleep interventions) will
increase both endothelium-dependent nitric oxide-mediated vasodilation and endothelial tissue-type
plasminogen activator release in adults with elevated blood pressure. Increases in endothelial vasodilator and
fibrinolytic function will be due, at least in part, to reduced oxidative stress. To test these hypotheses, 124
middle-aged adults with elevated blood pressure (>130/80 mmHg) will be studied. Endothelial vasodilator and
fibrinolytic function will be assessed, in vivo, using an isolated forearm model. The proposed study will provide
new and clinically important information regarding the influence of insufficient sleep on vascular endothelial
function in adults with elevated blood pressure. Moreover, determining the possible cardioprotective effects of
impr...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9834976
- **Project number:** 5R01HL135598-04
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF COLORADO
- **Principal Investigator:** CHRISTOPHER A DESOUZA
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $716,304
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2016-12-20 → 2021-11-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9834976

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9834976, Sleep and Blood Pressure-Related Endothelial Abnormalities (5R01HL135598-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9834976. Licensed CC0.

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