Renal sodium transporters in salt-sensitive hypertension

Hypertension is one of the most important risk factors for cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and renal diseases. The molecular mechanism of hypertension is not fully understood largely due to the complexity of pathogenesis involving many factors. The balance of sodium in body fluids plays a key role in blood pressure regulation. High salt intake is an important environmental factor leading to the development of hypertension. In this setting, the kidney plays a major role in the maintenance of blood pressure. The present review aims to summarize the current overview on the involvement of sodium transporters, sodium exchangers and sodium channels in the modulation of blood pressure, including sodium-hydrogen exchanger isoform 3 (NHE3), Na+-K+-2Cl⁻ cotransporter type 2 (NKCC2), sodium-chloride cotransporter (NCC) and epithelial sodium channel (ENaC), which are expressed in different nephron segments and the collecting ducts, respectively. In particular, recent findings on experimental animal models with modified gene of renal ion channels/transporters leading to the identification of several crucial physiological mechanisms involved in hypertension, were also reviewed. These findings could potentially provide novel therapeutic approaches applicable for hypertension.