CHRONIC RESPIRATORY CONDITIONS SERVE AS THE THIRD LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH IN THE UNITED STATES WHILE CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE (CVD) IS CURRENTLY THE LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH. HYPERTENSION (HTN) IS A LEADING RISK FACTOR FOR CVD AND INDIVIDUALS WITH HTN PRESENT WITH REDUCED LUNG FUNCTION COMPARED TO HEALTHY INDIVIDUALS. IN ADDITION, CIGARETTE SMOKE (CS) IS A MAJOR RISK FACTOR FOR CARDIOPULMONARY DISEASES (CVPD) AND THE DETRIMENTAL COMBINATION OF CIGARETTE USE IN INDIVIDUALS WITH HTN HAS BEEN WELL DOCUMENTED. RECENTLY, THERE HAS BEEN A STEADY DECLINE IN CIGARETTE USE WITH A DRAMATIC INCREASE IN THE USE OF ELECTRONIC NICOTINE DELIVERY SYSTEMS (ENDS), DEVICES WHICH DELIVER VAPORIZED NICOTINE TO THE LUNG. THE CONTRIBUTION OF ENDS TO CVPD RISK AND MORTALITY, SPECIFICALLY IN A HYPERTENSIVE STATE, REMAINS UNCLEAR.DESPITE MODERN PHARMACOLOGICAL TREATMENTS, HTN AND CHRONIC LUNG DISEASE REMAIN SIGNIFICANT PUBLIC HEALTH BURDENS AND COMPLEMENTARY THERAPIES ARE URGENTLY NEEDED. BERRIES ARE A RICH SOURCE OF POLYPHENOLS, NATURALLY OCCURRING BIOACTIVE COMPONENTS WHICH CAN INCREASE ENZYMATIC ANTIOXIDANT ACTIVITY. SEVERAL POLYPHENOLS, PRESENT IN BERRIES, HAVE BEEN SHOWN TO EXHIBIT BENEFICIAL EFFECTS ON THE AIRWAY IN MODELS OF CHRONIC LUNG DISEASE. BLACKBERRIES HAVE A RICH POLYPHENOLIC PROFILE; HOWEVER, RESEARCH HAS FOCUSED ON INDIVIDUAL POLYPHENOLS IN BERRIES RATHER THAN SYNERGISTIC OR ADDITIVE EFFECTS AS ELICITED BY WHOLE FOOD CONSUMPTION. ADDITIONALLY, INTAKE OF ANTHOCYANINS, FOUND IN HIGHEST AMOUNTS IN BLACKBERRIES, IS CORRELATED WITH A SLOWER DECLINE IN LUNG FUNCTION.THEREFORE, THE LONG-TERM GOAL OF THESE STUDIES IS TO EVALUATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF WHOLE-FOODS, PARTICULARLY BERRIES, IN MITIGATING CHRONIC DISEASE IN MULTI-ORGAN SYSTEMS, SPECIFICALLY CARDIOPULMONARY CONDITIONS. THE OVERALL GOAL OF THIS PROJECT IS TO USE A HYPERTENSIVE MODEL OF ENDS-INDUCED CHRONIC LUNG DISEASE TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFICACY OF BLACKBERRY IN REDUCING THE LIKELY DELETERIOUS FUNCTIONAL AND ARCHITECTURAL EFFECTS. WE ALSO AIM TO DETERMINE THE MECHANISM THROUGH WHICH BLACKBERRY MITIGATES THESE EFFECTS BY INVESTIGATING DIRECT EFFECTS ON THE LUNG ENDOTHELIUM IN VITRO AND UTILIZING INHIBITION STUDIES TO EVALUATE SPECIFIC MECHANISMS OF ACTION. DATA GENERATED FROM THESE STUDIES WILL BE DISSEMINATED TO THE SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY THROUGH PEER-REVIEWED JOURNALS, AT SCIENTIFIC MEETINGS AND THROUGH PRESS-RELEASES. CONDUCTING THESE STUDIES HAS THE POTENTIAL TO IMPACT GREATER PUBLIC HEALTH THROUGH IDENTIFYING WAYS IN WHICH INDIVIDUALS CAN REDUCE THEIR RISK OF CARDIOPULMONARY CONDITIONS THROUGH DIETARY MEANS. FURTHER, IDENTIFYING THE MECHANISMS THROUGH WHICH BLACKBERRIES EXERT THEIR EFFECTS MAY PROVIDE INFORMATION ON POTENTIAL NOVEL TREATMENT TARGETS. LASTLY, THESE STUDIES MAY LEAD TO AN INCREASE IN DEMAND FOR BLACKBERRIES DUE TO THEIR HEALTH BENEFITS RESULTING IN AGRICULTURAL EXPANSION IN PRODUCTION OF THESE BERRIES.