Dehydroepiandrosterone upregulates soluble guanylate cyclase and inhibits hypoxic pulmonary hypertension.

Objective: It has been reported that dehydroepiandrosterone is a pulmonary vasodilator and inhibits chronic hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension. Additionally, dehydroepiandrosterone has been shown to improve systemic vascular endothelial function. Thus, we hypothesized that chronic treatment with dehydroepiandrosterone would attenuate hypoxic pulmonary hypertension by enhancing pulmonary artery endothelial function.