Coronary Microvascular Function and Beyond: The Crosstalk between Hormones, Cytokines, and Neurotransmitters

Figure 2

“Internal” and “external” stimuli activate and balance endocrine, immune, and psychoneurological responses. Cells, in the figure of endothelial cells, interact with the surrounding environment by interpreting extracellular signals via receptor proteins that span their membrane. Receptors are composed of extracellular and intracellular domain. The inner domain interacts with other intracellular signaling proteins that relay the message to one or more effector proteins. These proteins activate gene transcription and mediate different responses. (HPA axis: hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis; NO: nitric oxide; (e)NOS: nitric oxide synthesis; NE norepinephrine; RAAS: renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system).