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GUT BACTERIAS ARE

IMPORTANT FACTOR IN

BLOOD PRESSURE MEDICINE

RESISTANCE

Findings could lead to new
options for hypertensive patients

who don’t respond to medication.

Almost half of the U.S. standing of the relationship Research has shown that they analyzed the compo- Yang. “However, our cur-
adult population has between gut microbes and the microorganisms in our sition of the gut microbiota, rent findings suggest that
high blood pressure — or drug efficacy could lead gut — collectively known as C. comes emerged as an the same drug may not be
hypertension — and about to new treatment ap- the gut microbiota — con- important player. appropriate for everyone
20% of these patients have proaches for people who tain a variety of enzymes because each person has
treatment-resistant hyper- don’t respond to blood that can affect drug me- Through additional ex- a unique gut microbial
tension. The reason why pressure medication. This tabolism. periments, the research- composition with a unique
some people are resistant could include new drugs or ers found that C. comes profile of enzymatic activ-
to treatment has been a modulating gut microbiota To find out if gut micro- can actually break down ities.”
mystery, but new study with probiotics, antibiotics, biota might play a role in quinapril. They also ob-
results show that a certain and other methods.” resistance to blood pres- served that giving C. comes The researchers are now
gut bacterium may be an sure medicine, Yang and and quinapril to hyperten- performing similar experi-
important factor. By studying the gut mi- colleagues administered a sive rats reduced blood ments using other types of
crobes of rats, Yang and single dose of the ACE in- pressure less than adminis- gut bacteria and additional
colleagues discovered hibitor quinapril to rats with tering quinapril alone. blood pressure medica-
that a bacteria known high blood pressure. They tions to further explore how
as Coprococcus comes found that quinapril was “We are still in the early the gut microbiota modu-
contributes to resistance more effective at lowering stages of determining the lates the effectiveness of
to ACE inhibitors, one of blood pressure in hyper- interactions between gut antihypertensive drugs.
the primary drug classes tensive rats with a lower bacteria and antihyper-
used to treat high blood gut microbiota load. When tensive medications,” said
pressure.

“Today, doctors treat “Our ultimate goal is to find
resistant hypertension a link between gut micro-
by adding or substituting bial composition and en-
medications, which can zymatic activity and drug
contribute to overdoses, response effectiveness
more side effects, and because this will provide
noncompliance,” said Tao a foundation for applying Researchers discovered that a bacterium known as Coprococcus comes may contribute to
Yang, PhD, assistant pro- precision medicine to treat resistance to ACE inhibitors. They used studies involving liquid chromatography–mass spectrom-
fessor at the University of resistant hypertension,” etry and blood pressure readings recorded via radio telemetry from a rat model of hypertension.
Toledo. “A better under- Yang said. Credit: Tao Yang, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, University of Toledo