FADD and hypertensive disorder: We further determined the expression of the upstream cardiac Fas/FasL-to-mitochondria-mediated apoptotic pathways in hypertension; the protein levels of Fas ligand, Fas, and FADD, as well as Bax and cytochrome c, were measured by Western blot methods in the left ventricle excised from the WKY, SHR, and SHR-ARB groups.