Dear Colleague,

Cardiovascular calcification is a highly prevalent finding that is associated with aging, atherosclerosis, chronic kidney disease, and diabetes mellitus. When present, calcification of the cardiac, peripheral, or pulmonary vasculature or heart valves is associated with adverse cardiovascular outcomes. Although several mechanisms have been investigated, there is currently no known therapeutic intervention that successfully prevents or regresses established cardiovascular calcification. Furthermore, the molecular etiologies of vascular and valvular calcification remain incompletely characterized. The complexity of the molecular mechanisms that drive cardiovascular calcification is underscored by the participation of several cardiovascular and circulating cell types in calcification of vessels and valves; the involvement of numerous distinct cellular processes, including apoptosis, autophagy, extracellular vesicle generation, increased oxidant stress, inflammation, and lipid deposition; the balance between pro-calcification mediators and calcification inhibitors; and active remodeling of the extracellular matrix. Despite what is known to date, further work in the field is necessary to identify rational treatment targets and establish new therapeutics.

In this Special Issue of IJMS, molecular mechanisms of calcification in vessels in the coronary, peripheral, and pulmonary vascular beds as well as cardiac valves will be explored. The Special Issue will include studies performed using in vitro models, as well as preclinical, translational and clinical studies or reviews focused on molecular mechanisms of calcification. Novel methodological advances that facilitate studies of cardiovascular calcification will also be included.

Dr. Jane A. Leopold
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. International Journal of Molecular Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. There is an Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal. For details about the APC please see here. Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• vascular calcification
• valvular calcification
• chronic kidney disease
• oxidant stress
• matrix vesicles
• autophagy
• endoplasmic reticulum stress
• osteogenic (trans) differentiation
• calcification inhibitors