On the otherhand, in pathological processes, such as hypertension, an MMPs/TIMPs ratio imbalancecontributes to the excessive degradation of extracellular matrix (ECM)proteins18, and results inpathological vascular remodeling19 .Therefore, the MMP-9/TIMP-1 ratio might be a better indicator of that process. The gene discussed is TIMP1; the disease is hypertensive disorder.