ABSTRACT

Cardiovascular disease is a threat to global health and one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Cardiovascular disease includes myocardial infarction (MI), angina, stroke, hypertension, congestive heart failure (CHF), hardening of the arteries, and other circulatory system disease. According to the World Health Organization, more than one billion individuals worldwide are hypertensive and four million individuals die annually as a direct result of hypertension. High blood pressure causes one in every eight deaths, making hypertension the third leading killer in the world. Hypertension affects 30% of adults in the Western world and is the leading cause of death and more morbidity worldwide. Hypertension is associated with many chronic conditions such as insulin resistance, obesity, carbohydrate tolerance, atherosclerosis, and cardiovascular disease. The development of a safe and effective way to manage hypertension has challenged medical researchers for centuries. The important determinant causing hypertension was shown to be overactivity of the renin-angiotensin system, thereby making this a major target for therapy. The angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE), a component of the rennin angiotensin system, plays a key role in the homeostatic mechanism of mammals, contributing to the maintenance of normal blood pressure and for the electrolyte balance, being involved in the regulation and control of the arterial pressure.