AGT and Hypertension: Using the well-established angII infusion model of systemic arterial hypertension (Landmesser et al., 2002; Monassier and El Fertak, 2006), we showed that the induction of hypertension leads to vascular remodeling and overall stiffening of the aorta as a result of both passive vascular matrix stiffening and contributions from VSMCs.