Towards a New Understanding of the Molecular Mechanisms of Cardiovascular Disease

Abstract

In this article, we review a process put forward in former publications by which fatty acid micelles and vesicles with an acidic core can develop, and the physiological manifestations of such process in the human body. The process allows the understanding of arterial calcification, why coronary arteries, aorta, and carotids are the most affected vessels, and the preferential distribution of plaques on the areas of the endothelium where shear stress is lower. Also reviewed are the role of systemic buffers in the control of blood pH, and the effects of pollutants, namely heavy metals, diet, and ethanol intake, on cardiovascular risks. The most important cardiovascular risk factors are explained based on their effect on either lowering blood pH or increasing blood FFA concentration, or both. Cardiovascular risk protection factors also find an explanation within the proposed framework. As a final point, the importance of knowing blood pH and concentrations of free fatty acids and albumin concentrations in the blood is emphasized in developing a strategy of prevention of cardiovascular disease.