Chronic elevated levels of IL-18 may lead to a persistently increased expression of IL-18 inducible cytokines downstream of the NF-κB/AP-1 signal pathway, i.e. IFNγ and MMPs [34,35], which are of importance for an inflammatory state in atherosclerosis in general and for arterial remodeling, important in HT. Here, NFKB1 is linked to hematocrit.