High blood pressure is usually linked to things like diet, stress, or lifestyle. Maybe genetics. That is what most people are told, and it is not wrong. But it might not be the full picture.
A new study suggests there could be more going on. A specific part of the brain may be involved. A study published in Circulation Research, conducted by researchers from the University of São Paulo in Brazil and the University of Auckland in New Zealand, points to a brain region that could play a role in raising blood pressure.
How a brain region may be linked to high blood pressure
The focus of the study is a small brain region called the lateral parafacial, or pFL.
This area is mainly linked to breathing. Think forceful exhalations like when you exercise, cough, or laugh. But the study found it may also have another role. It can tighten blood vessels.
That matters because tighter blood vessels can raise blood pressure. The researchers believe this link between breathing patterns and blood vessel activity could explain why many people still have uncontrolled hypertension, even when they are on medication.
What the study found in animal experiments
The research was carried out on rats using genetic techniques. Scientists were able to switch pFL neurons on and off and then observe what changed.
They monitored breathing-related nerve activity, sympathetic nerve activity, and blood pressure. When the pFL neurons were activated, they triggered other brain circuits that pushed blood pressure up.
In rats with hypertension, these neurons were not just helping with breathing. They were also causing blood vessels to constrict.
The researchers also mapped how this brain region communicates with other neurons and compared it with normal rats. That helped them understand what was different in hypertensive cases.
Why this matters for treatment and conditions like sleep apnea
One key takeaway is that this could open up new ways to treat high blood pressure.
“Given that around 50 percent of patients with hypertension have a neurogenic component, the challenge is to understand mechanisms generating sympatho-excitation in hypertension,” write the researchers.
“Such a revelation would provide much-needed clinical orientation for new therapeutic strategies,” they added.
“We discovered that, in conditions of high blood pressure, the lateral parafacial region is activated and, when our team inactivated this region, blood pressure fell to normal levels,” says physiologist Julian Paton.
The study also helps explain something doctors have noticed for a while. People with sleep apnea often have higher blood pressure.
During sleep apnea, oxygen levels drop and carbon dioxide levels rise. That activates the pFL neurons, linking breathing problems directly to blood pressure changes.
What comes next and what scientists are trying to do
There is one important limitation. The study was done on animals. It is likely similar mechanisms exist in humans, but it is not confirmed yet.
Still, the need for new treatments is clear. A large part of the global population deals with hypertension, and not everyone responds well to current medications. It is also linked to serious conditions like heart disease and dementia.
The next step is figuring out how to target this brain pathway safely. Researchers are looking at carotid bodies, small sensors in the neck that can influence the pFL region without directly affecting the brain.
“Our goal is to target the carotid bodies, and we are importing a new drug that is being repurposed by us to quench carotid body activity and inactivate remotely the lateral parafacial region safely, i.e., without needing to use a drug that penetrates the brain,” says Paton.
This approach still needs a lot of testing. But it points to something important. Blood pressure might not just be about what you eat or how you live. It could also be about how your brain is involved in the process.
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