Figure 1.

Mechanism of vascular calcification. Imbalance between calcification inhibitors and inducers is considered as a key feature in the pathology of vascular calcification. Unless repressed by calcification inhibitors, circulating and local triggers induce a transdifferentiation process of VSMCs, resulting in a phenotype switch of VSMCs from a contractile to an osteochondrogenic phenotype. The key mechanisms associated with vascular calcification include inflammation, unfettered reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, apoptosis, matrix vesicle release, and ER stress. Abbreviations: VSMCs: vascular smooth muscle cells, AGE: advanced glycation end-products, LDL: low-density lipoprotein, ER: endoplasmic reticulum.