Editorial: Reviews in cardiovascular pharmacology: 2023

Cardiovascular diseases remains a leading cause of death globally, accounting for approximately 17.9 million fatalities in 2019 (WHO, 2021). Cardiovascular diseases include hypertension, atherosclerosis, ischemic heart disease, stroke and heart failure, and imposes a significant socioeconomic burden. The Research Topic "Reviews in Cardiovascular Pharmacology: 2023" provides an overview of both the pathogenesis and pharmacological advances in cardiovascular diseases. This collection features twelve articles, each offering in-depth discussions on recent findings on the mechanisms underlying cardiovascular diseases, as well as the development and application of novel cardiovascular therapies. The articles cover a wide range of topics, including recent advancements in clinical trials, emerging concepts on drug mechanisms, therapeutic strategies, and challenges related to pharmacokinetics.Nitric oxide (NO) is a highly reactive gaseous molecule released by endothelial cells in blood vessels, playing a crucial role in mediating protective cardiovascular effects, including vasodilation (Siti et al., 2019). Impaired NO function often occurs before the clinical onset of cardiovascular disease (). This endogenous vasodilator binds to soluble guanylate cyclase (sGC), stimulating the synthesis of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP). Elevated cGMP activates protein kinase G (PKG), which lowers intracellular calcium levels in vascular smooth muscle cells, inducing vasodilation (Mishra et al., 2025). Yin et al. review the progress of guanylate cyclase activators to stimulate the NO-sGC-cGMP signaling pathway in patients with cardiovascular disease. These include riociguat,vericiguat,praliciguat,olinciguat,cinaciguat,ataciguat,runcaciguat,mosliciguat,and BI 685509,the The authors declare that the editorial was written in the absence of any commercial or financial 117 relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. 118