Dietary changes may help treat pulmonary hypertension (Reduce glutamine and serine sources to help)

Blood vessels in the lungs aren't like the others in the body. This difference becomes clear in pulmonary hypertension, in which only the lungs' blood vessels stiffen progressively, leading to chronic lung disease, heart failure and death.

The underlying reasons for this organ-specific vessel stiffening remained a mystery until Stephen Chan and colleagues made a surprising discovery about these blood vessel cells in patients with pulmonary hypertension—they're hungry.

They found that hypertensive pulmonary blood vessel cells have a voracious appetite for two amino acids, glutamine and serine, and—as happens with any unbalanced diet—there are consequences. This metabolism of glutamine and serine is a key driver of pulmonary hypertension disease progression.

Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins, which help build cellular structures, carry out biological functions, and regulate tissue and organ function. As hypertensive pulmonary blood vessels metabolize glutamine and serine, they create two new amino acids, called proline and glycine.

Proline and glycine are the primary building blocks of collagen protein, which makes up 30% of our body's total protein and provides a structural framework for our skin, muscles, bones and connective tissues.

The appetite for glutamine and serine and the resulting elevated levels of proline and glycine in hypertensive pulmonary blood vessel cells drive the overproduction of collagen, which leads to vessel stiffening and impaired function—the hallmark feature of pulmonary hypertension.

Knowing amino acids are most often absorbed through our diets, the team also discovered that reducing the dietary intake of glutamine- and serine-rich foods helped reduce collagen overproduction.

"For the first time, we have a dietary maneuver that may serve as an effective therapy for the disease," says Chan.

For patients with pulmonary hypertension, avoiding foods rich in serine and glutamine, or eating foods with these amino acids depleted, might bolster the effectiveness of current medications.

I’m helping research the basics for a family just diagnosed with a methylation gene mutation https://mthfrdiet.net/
For years each of the family members had odd, transitory medical ‘problems’ and all were hypertensive. Finally, one of the kids was diagnosed with a methylation gene mutation (MTHFR) and testing revealed one pair (homozygous) of mutated genes.
The other family members were tested and each had only half of a pair (one gene, not both) mutated for that same MTHRF trait.
All have been started on individualized levels of methylfolate and Methylcobalmain (methylated B-12) and all are experiencing decreasing blood pressure.

MTHRF gene mutations are not rare - I think I read roughly 1/4 to 1/3 of Americans, with different ethnicities impacted at different rates.

The mutation can cause deficiencies in potassium and magnesium, to name a few impacts resulting from a domino-effect set of complications, and the magnesium appears to relate to muscle tension, so we’re speculating that the blood vessels are muscles and may tense under deficiency. I say this because some of their family members were experiencing ‘hardening’ of muscle in calf or bicep which was alleviated by using magnesium supplements, lotions or sprays.

But it’s complex, so it could be any number of things. Just wanted to mention it because none of their doctors ever tested them over the years until a ‘new guy’ suggested testing for the mutation. They had all gone through various types of screening, but medical testing never revealed much other than being hypertensive, low on magnesium sometimes, and/or low on potassium, their physicians gave the vague impression they were just too worried about their issues, even when it was blood pressure spikes which led them to the ER.
Some family members require heavy prescription levels of methyl folate, and some take lighter OTC versions - it’s different for everybody and there is a concern re taking too much. But the rippling of relief is a joy to behold, as all are experiencing gastric, hypertension, food allergy etc. relief, with the child who has a pair of the genes experiencing important relief with mental health issues, and others reporting better sleep and relaxation - just basically watching them bloom as all are drawing better health and optimism.

They can’t digest Folic Acid and it’s supplemented in so many foods - at times they were experiencing side effects of excess Folic acid, but they weren’t taking supplements. Real whack-a-mole stuff with no answers, for years. Dairy makes it worse - so trying to eat well actually complicated matters.

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