Myocardial vasoactive intestinal peptide and fibrosis induced by nitric oxide synthase inhibition in the rat

AIMS: In both normotensive and hypertensive rats, the degree of myocardial fibrosis is inversely correlated with the concentration of vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) in the myocardium. Treatment with nitric oxide (NO) synthase inhibitors also causes myocardial fibrosis. In this study, we sought to determine whether the myocardial fibrosis induced by treatment with the NO synthase inhibitor N(G)-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester (l-NAME) was also associated with depletion of VIP in the myocardium. METHODS: Male Wistar Kyoto (WKY) and spontaneous hypertensive rats (SHR) rats treated with l-NAME were randomized to low, intermediate or high salt content diets. After 4 weeks, the hearts were harvested, the degree of fibrosis quantified and VIP concentration measured. RESULTS: In WKY, systolic blood pressure increased with increasing dietary sodium (P < 0.05). Myocardial fibrosis also increased with increasing dietary sodium (P < 0.005). Myocardial VIP concentration decreased with increasing dietary sodium (P < 0.025). In contrast, in the SHR treated with l-NAME, systolic blood pressure increased but the increase was not affected by sodium intake. Further, myocardial fibrosis and myocardial VIP were unchanged by increased dietary sodium. Higher doses of l-NAME in the SHR did not increase the systolic blood pressure, increase the degree of myocardial fibrosis or decrease the myocardial concentration of VIP. These differences in myocardial VIP concentration may reflect differing effects of l-NAME on VIP metabolism, as l-NAME increased VIP metabolism in the WKY (P < 0.05) but did not change VIP metabolism in the SHR. CONCLUSIONS: We conclude that depletion of VIP in the myocardium is associated with increasing myocardial fibrosis in l-NAME treated WKY. As VIP depletion occurs in other models of myocardial fibrosis, it appears to be a common mechanism. Myocardial VIP depletion may therefore be a new and important factor in the pathogenesis of cardiac fibrosis.     

Cardiovascular and sympathetic nervous system responses to an acute stressor in borderline hypertensive rats (BHR)

The present study examined cardiovascular and plasma catecholamine responses to acute footshock stress in adult male Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) normotensive, borderline hypertensive (BHR), and spontaneously hypertensive (SHR) rats. Basal mean arterial pressure and heart rate were equivalent for SHRs and BHRs, and levels for both groups were elevated compared to WKYs. Following transfer to the footshock chamber, blood pressure increased to a greater degree in SHRs than in WKYs or BHRs. However, the tachycardia was exaggerated in both BHRs and SHRs compared to WKYs. In response to intermittent footshock stress, all groups had comparable heart rate increases while maintaining blood pressure near baseline levels. SHRs demonstrated a sympathetic hyperresponsiveness to footshock stress, with greater increases in plasma norepinephrine and epinephrine levels than WKYs immediately following footshock. At 5 minutes postfootshock, plasma catecholamines remained elevated in SHRs over both WKYs and BHRs. Plasma catecholamine increases following footshock were comparable at all time points between WKYs and BHRs. The present results demonstrate that sympathetic responsiveness of BHRs to acute footshock stress is more similar to normotensive WKYs than to hypertensive SHRs.     

Acquisition of conditioned suppression and responsivity to thermal stimulation in spontaneously hypertensive,renal hypertensive and normotensive rats

The acquisition of conditioned suppression of instrumental responding and responsivity to thermal stimulation were assessed in spontaneously hypertensive rats of the Okamoto-Aoki strain (SHRs), renal hypertensive rats of the Wistar-Kyoto strain (WKYs), and normotensive WKY rats. Spontaneously hypertensive rats showed significantly faster acquisition of conditioned suppression than age-matched WKY normotensive rats. This acquisition difference between SHRs and normotensive WKYs was maintained even following chronic preexposure to shock alone; a treatment that retarded normal acquisition of conditioned suppression. In contrast, renal hypertensive WKYs acquired conditioned suppression at the same rate as age-matched normotensive WKYs. Spontaneously hypertensive rats and renal hypertensive WKYs both showed significantly longer latencies than normotensive WKYs to respond to thermal stimulation using a hot-plate assay. These outcomes suggest that the relationship between blood pressure and the acquisition of conditioned suppression in SHRs is either pleiotrophic or a consequence of random fixation, and that acquisition of conditioned suppression may serve as a valuable marker variable of hypertension in the SHR. The dissociation between acquisition of conditioned suppression and responsivity to thermal stimulation suggests that different mechanisms may mediate nociceptive responses to shock and thermal stimulation in these models of hypertension.     

Early onset of a decreased intracellular magnesium and phosphate concentration in smooth muscle cell of SHR.

A decrease in total magnesium content is not a direct proof of a decreased magnesium ion concentration. It could reflect a phosphate alteration or an ATP metabolism disorder. Plasma phosphate levels are lower in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) than in Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKYs), and defects in membrane regulation or mitochondrial ATP synthase occur. Only sparse data exist concerning cellular magnesium and phosphate concentrations in hypertensive cells. In aortic smooth muscle cells from 10 SHRs of the Münster strain and 10 age-matched normotensive WKY rats, the intracellular phosphate and magnesium content was measured by electron probe X-ray microanalysis (Camscan CS 24 apparatus, Cambridge, U.K.). The Mg++ content was 0.09 +/- 0.15 g/kg dry weight in SHRs versus 1.15 +/- 0.10 g/kg dry weight in WKY rats (p < 0.01). Vascular smooth muscle phosphate content was 23.6 +/- 0.79 g/kg dry weight in WKY rats versus 15.81 +/- 1.22 g/kg dry weight in SHRs (p < 0.01). In aortic smooth muscle cells of one month old SHRs intracellular magnesium was measured as 1.05 +/- 0.08 versus 1.09 +/- 0.09 g/kg dry weight in WKYs. Intracellular phosphate concentration in one month old SHRs was 18.71 +/- 2.41 versus 21.36 +/- 1.25 g/kg dry weight in WKYs (eight animals in each group). Aortic smooth muscle cells of SHRs are caracterized by markedly lowered intracellular phosphate and magnesium concentrations, resulting in an altered ATP-metabolism, as described earlier. Possibly a membrane defect or a magnesium deficiency or disturbed magnesium channels are responsible for the early onset in the pathogenesis of primary hypertension.     

Spontaneously hypertensive rats exhibit altered cardiovascular and neuronal responses to muscle contraction

We examined the cardiovascular and ventrolateral medullary neuronal responses to muscle contraction in the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) and normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rat (WKY) control. Cardiovascular, respiratory and ventrolateral medullary neuronal responses to muscle contraction evoked by tibial nerve stimulation were recorded. SHRs exhibited significantly larger drops in arterial pressure compared to WKYs in response to muscle contraction (P < 0.05). Basal ventrolateral medulla neuronal discharge rates were similar between the SHR and the WKY groups. A majority of neurons recorded responded to muscle contraction in both the WKY (77 %; n = 53) and the SHR groups (68 %; n = 62). There was no difference in the percentage of neurons that responded with an increase (approximately 60 %) or decrease (approximately 40 %) in firing rate between hypertensive and normotensive rats. Pulse wave-triggered averaging techniques showed that most neurons that responded to muscle contraction also possessed a basal firing rhythm temporally related to the cardiac cycle (85 % in WKYs, 83 % in SHRs). However, decreases in neuronal firing rates in response to muscle contraction were significantly greater in SHRs than WKYs. Therefore, we conclude that muscle contraction unmasks a hyperexcitability of neurons in the ventrolateral medulla of SHRs that parallels the heightened blood pressure responses.     

Pharmacological blockade of blood pressure and heart rate increases following milk ingestion in 15-day-old SHR and WKY rat pups.

The effects of hexamethonium, a ganglionic blocker, on blood pressure (BP) and heart rate (HR) responses to milk ingestion were assessed in awake, 15-day-old spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and their normotensive progenitor strain, Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY) using two methods of milk delivery. SHRs had larger increases in BP compared to WKYs, but WKYs exhibited larger increases in HR following milk ingestion from an anesthetized dam. BP responses to milk ingestion from a tongue cannula were also larger in SHRs. Administration of hexamethonium prior to milk delivery resulted in a drop in BP following milk ingestion in both milk delivery situations for each strain. The results suggest that SHRs exhibit exaggerated sympathetic activation to milk ingestion compared to WKYs, and that in both strains, cardiovascular responses to feeding are modulated by the presence of the dam.     

Cardiac muscle mechanics from Doca- and aging spontaneously hypertensive rats

Contractile properties of isolated papillary muscles from three age groups of spontaeously hypertensive rats (SHRs) were compared to those from age-matched Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKYs) to assess whether there were differences between the strains preceding and during the course of the hypertension. In all three age groups (7, 12, and 50 wk), the mechanical refractory periods (MRP) were longer and aftercontractions more prominent after paired pulse stimulation in preparations from SHRs than from age-matched WKYs. Other isometric twitch properties of SHR papillary muscles at Lmax were not different from WKYs, with the exception of a shorter half-relaxation time in the youngest SHR group. Although hypertension and cardiac hypertrophy increased in SHRs with age, aging had similar influences on most cardiac contractile properties in both strains. None of the isometric properties of papillary muscles from rats made hypertensive by Doca treatment were different from those in normotensive control preparations. This suggests that differences seen between SHRs and WKYs probably represent genetic differences between these strains and are not directly caused by the hypertension.     

自发性高血压大鼠淋巴微循环功能受损

目的:观察自发性高血压大鼠(SHRs)淋巴微循环功能变化.方法:8周龄雄性SHR大鼠(SHR组)和WKY大鼠(WKY组),每组各10只.应用VasT rack测量两组大鼠微淋巴管自律运动;取胸导管分离原代淋巴管内皮细胞(LECs).应用免疫荧光和Western Blot检测LECs血管内皮生长因子受体3(VEGFR3)...     

Gamma-interferon corrects aberrant protein kinase C levels and immunosuppression in the spontaneously hypertensive rat.

The effects of gamma-interferon (gamma-IFN) on protein kinase C (PKC) levels and immunosuppression in the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) were examined. First, an abnormal PKC distribution was found in spleen, thymus and aorta from SHRs relative to normotensive controls. Biweekly injections of rat recombinant gamma-IFN (1000 U/kg) restored basal or resting PKC levels to those found in normotensive Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats. We also examined the effects of in vivo gamma-IFN treatment on nuclear PKC (nPKC) activation in purified, isolated splenocyte nuclei. It was found that basal nPKC levels were higher in untreated SHRs than gamma-IFN SHRs or WKYs. Also, while nuclei from untreated SHRs were relatively unresponsive to various immunoreactive substances and PKC activators, gamma-IFN treatment significantly restored activity. Last, the proliferative response to mitogen challenge of isolated splenocytes from untreated SHRs, gamma-IFN-treated SHRs and WKYs was studied. Although gamma-IFN treatment did not restore the proliferative response to that of WKYs, the mitogen response was significantly enhanced by treatment with gamma-IFN. The data show that gamma-IFN acts to restore normal immune function and corrects aberrant PKC levels and adds to the growing body of knowledge suggesting a role for immune dysfunction in the etiology of hypertension.     

自发性高血压大鼠中脑导水管周围灰质nNOS阳性神经元的变化

目的观察自发性高血压大鼠(spontaneously hypertensiverats,SHR)中脑导水管周围灰质内神经元型一氧化氮合酶(neuronal nitric oxide synthase,nNOS)阳性神经元的变化。方法取SHR和京都种威斯特大鼠(Wistar-Koytorats,WKY)大鼠各30只,分别于3月(14周)龄,6月龄和12月龄测血压并处死,ABC免疫细胞化学方法显示nNOS阳性神经元。结果SHR血压随鼠龄的增长逐渐升高,于12～14周龄时血压在高位稳定,且均高于WKY大鼠(P<0.05)维持在[(20.8±1.1)～(26.3±1.0)]kPa(P<0.05);WKY大鼠各时期血压无明显差异,维持在[(13.7±1.6)～(15.1±1.7)]kPa。中脑导水管周围灰质nNOS阳性神经元以小细胞为主,突起有2-4个,许多朝中脑水管方向延伸。定量结果显示,SHR大鼠nNOS阳性神经元随着血压升高呈逐渐减少的趋势,12月龄与3月龄和6月龄相比均有显著差异(P<0.01),而各个时期WKY大鼠PAGnNOS阳性神经元均无明显变化。结论SHR中脑导水管周围灰质nNOS阳性神经元的减少可能通过影响延髓的血压调节中枢调控高血压的发生,并有可能与高血压的痛觉过敏有关。     

Vascular prostaglandin synthesis in the spontaneously hypertensive rat.

Vascular prostaglandin synthesis was studied in tissues (aorta and inferior vena cava) obtained from spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) of the Aoki-Okamoto strain and age-matched Wistar-Kyoto (WKYs) controls. PGE2 synthesis in aortas from SHRs was significantly enhanced at 10 wk of age (5.3 +/- 0.7 nmol PGE2/mg protein per 10 min vs. 1.9 +/- 0.03 nmol PGE2/mg protein per min in the WKYs, P less than 0.001) and increased progressively until 22 wk of age; PGE2alpha synthesis in SHRs was not significantly different from WKYs. In the venous walls from SHRs, PGF2alpha was the prostaglandin predominantly synthesized (7.1 +/- 0.6 vs. 1.9 +/- 0.05 nmol PGE2alpha/mg protein per 10 min in the WKY controls, P less than 0.01). The activities of 15-hydroxy prostaglandin dehydrogenase and PGE 9-ketoreductase were also compared in the two groups of animals. The only difference detected was a significant increase in venous PGE 9-ketoreductase of SHR's (7.3 +/- 0.06 vs. 4.8 +/- 0.04 nmol PGF2alpha/mg per min, P less than 0.01). The results suggest that increased vascular synthesis of prostaglandins accompanies the development of spontaneous hypertension and may serve to attenuate the effects of blood pressure elevation.     

Peritoneal leucocytes from spontaneously hypertensive rats have reduced chemiluminescence response and lowered sensitivity to dexamethasone in vivo

The genetically altered hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenocortical axis in the spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHR) suggests altered phagocyte function in this strain. We therefore compared luminol-amplified chemiluminescence in peritoneal leucocytes from 10- to 12-week-old SHRs and age-matched Wistar–Kyoto rats (WKYs) activated by serum-opsonized zymosan particles (SOZ), N-formyl-l -methionyl-l -leucyl-l -phenylalanine (fMLP) or phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA). While the number of peritoneal monocytes/macrophages was increased by 49% in SHRs relative to WKYs, activator-induced chemiluminescence per cell in SHRs was only 14–42% of that in WKYs. FMLP responses were especially low in SHRs. Treatment of rats with dexamethasone in the drinking water for 48 h prior to ex vivo experiments reduced chemiluminescence dose-dependently in WKYs as well as in SHRs. ED₅₀ of dexamethasone in SHRs was, however, increased compared to WKYs, indicating lowered sensitivity to dexamethasone in SHRs. No evidence was found of strain differences in differential distribution of peritoneal cells or in pharmacokinetics of dexamethasone. Plasma ACTH levels were significantly higher in SHRs than in WKYs, while basal plasma corticosterone concentrations in SHRs and WKYs were not significantly different. The results suggest that production of reactive oxygen compounds by peritoneal mononuclear phagocytes is reduced in SHRs compared with WKYs, and that the phagocyte respiratory burst is modulated differently by endogenous glucocorticoids in the two strains. We propose that reduced activity of the phagocyte NADPH oxidase-myeloperoxidase system is a major contributory cause of the altered chemiluminescence responses in SHRs. The data indicate that species differences may also be present at earlier steps in the signal transduction pathways activated by SOZ, fMLP and PMA.     

Chronic type 1 diabetes in spontaneously hypertensive rats leads to exacerbated cardiac fibrosis

IntroductionDiabetes in human subjects is often associated with hypertension. The aim of this study was to examine the development of cardiac fibrosis following induction of type 1 diabetes in genetically hypertensive rats.MethodsDiabetes was induced by streptozotocin (STZ) injection in 8-week-old normotensive Wistar–Kyoto (WKY) rats and spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) for a duration of 16 or 24 weeks. Aged-matched, nondiabetic WKY and SHRs were used as controls. At termination of treatment, the rats were anaesthetized, hearts arrested in diastole and perfusion fixed. A comprehensive examination of cardiac fibrosis throughout the right and left ventricles was undertaken in picrosirius red-stained sections, using image analysis and by undertaking collagen type I and type III immunohistochemistry.ResultsInduction of diabetes in the SHRs led to a marked increase in the levels of interstitial fibrosis in the left ventricle plus septum (LV+S) at both 16 and 24 weeks duration (59% and 43% increase, respectively) and also in the right ventricle after 24 weeks duration of diabetes (35% increase compared to the nondiabetic SHR). Exacerbated perivascular fibrosis was also observed in the LV+S in the diabetic-hypertensive rats at the later time point. These effects of induction of diabetes were not observed in the normotensive strain.Conclusions/InterpretationOur findings clearly demonstrate elevations in cardiac fibrosis when type 1 diabetes is combined with hypertension. Our findings thus stress the importance of closely monitoring both blood pressure and glucose levels in type 1 diabetic patients in order to prevent myocardial collagen deposition.     

自发性高血压大鼠颈总动脉的平均壁面切应力和周向应力

目的确定自发性高血压大鼠(SHR)颈总动脉的平均壁面切应力(WSS)和周向应力(CS),并与同龄正常血压大鼠(WKY)相对比,观察SHR和WKY大鼠颈总动脉平均WSS和CS的特征。方法选取12周龄SHR作为动物模型,同龄WKY为对照组;通过在体测定颈总动脉的平均血流量与平均血压,离体测量颈总动脉的无载荷状态形态学数据,以及在体轴向伸长比条件下颈总动脉段的压力(p)-容积(V)关系,确定颈总动脉平均WSS和CS;同时比较SHR和WKY颈总动脉的平均血压和血流量、无载荷和载荷状态几何尺寸以及平均WSS和CS的特征。结果与正常血压的WKY组相比,SHR组颈总动脉血压明显增高、流量明显降低;无载荷和载荷状态下SHR组动脉的内外半径均增大,载荷状态下SHR组动脉壁厚减小;SHR颈总动脉平均WSS明显降低,而CS明显增高。结论高血压和低流量引起了SHR颈总动脉重建;低WSS和高CS是SHR颈总动脉血液动力学参数的重要特征;WSS和CS的协同作用可能是反映动脉重建的敏感指标之一。     

Comparative effects of hydralazine and captopril on the cardiovascular changes in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Vascular changes that develop during the course of blood pressure rise in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) can be modified by antihypertensive therapy. It is not known, however, whether there is selectivity in the structural response to specific antihypertensive drugs. This issue was examined by comparing the effects of a direct vasodilator (hydralazine) and a converting enzyme inhibitor (captopril) on morphologic aspects of the cardiovascular system. Male SHRs, 21 weeks of age, were given either hydralazine (HCl plus hydrochlorothiazide, captopril plus hydrochlorothiazide, or hydrochlorothiazide alone. Untreated age-matched SHRs and Wistar-Kyoto normotensive rats (WKYs) were used as controls. Animals were sacrificed at 27-28 weeks of age. Both hydralazine and captopril lowered significantly the blood pressure of SHRs, whereas hydrochlorothiazide alone was ineffective. The heart/body weight ratios were dramatically reduced in captopril-treated SHRs to below the level of WKYs; hydralazine induced only a very modest (5%) reduction, whereas the diuretic alone was ineffective. The morphology of the aortic intima improved dramatically in response to captopril and hydralazine and, to a lesser extent, hydrochlorothiazide alone. This effect becomes apparent within 6 weeks of treatment, and the only evidence of preexisting disease is the persistence of collagen in the subendothelium. Captopril and hydralazine, but not hydrochlorothiazide alone, reduce the thickness of the aortic media below that of normotensive controls. In addition, captopril and hydralazine improve the structure of small intrarenal vessels. There was a strong correlation between the relative effectiveness of the three pharmacologic agents in lowering blood pressure and in improving the changes of intrarenal vessels. These results highlight the capacity of antihypertensive therapy to arrest or reverse the structural sequelae of hypertension. In addition, they underscore the heterogeneity in the response of different components of the cardiovascular system, which, in part, reflects selectivity in the action of antihypertensive agents.     

Differential cardiovascular responses to stressors in hypertensive and normotensive rats

The aim of this study was to determine to what extent stress-induced cardiovascular responses depend upon rat strain and/or stressor. Spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs), Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKYs) and Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were implanted with telemetry probes in order to measure heart rate and blood pressure changes when exposed to a stressor. The stress protocols employed included handling, air-jet and restraint, where each stressor was repeated over 10 consecutive days. In addition, a heterologous protocol was established whereby the experimental groups having experienced 10 days of air-jet stress were then immediately exposed to 10 consecutive days of restraint. Each stressor caused graded tachycardic and pressor responses in all strains. For all strains, the magnitude and duration of heart rate and blood pressure increases were greatest in the restraint-based protocols while handling and air-jet caused submaximal changes. A comparison between strains indicated that SHRs exhibited prolonged pressor responses to each of the stressor types tested as compared to the normotensive strains. In addition, repeated exposure over 10 days to handling and air-jet in SHRs caused tachycardic and/or pressor responses to adapt to 'normotensive-like' levels. Heterologous restraint stress caused sensitization of cardiovascular responses upon first exposure, predominantly in normotensive strains. Collectively these data show that the magnitude and duration of the tachycardia and pressor responses evoked by the stressors were different within the strains and were also modified by prior experience. In addition, the cardiovascular profiles presented in this study demonstrate that, within each strain, the heart rate response during stress is graded according to the type of stressor encountered.     

Importance of decreased intracellular phosphate and magnesium concentrations and reduced ATPase activities in spontaneously hypertensive rats.

A decrease in total magnesium content is not a direct proof of a decreased magnesium ion concentration. It could reflect a phosphate alteration or an ATP metabolism disorder. Plasma phosphate levels are lower in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) than in Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats, and defects in membrane regulation or mitochondrial ATP synthase occur. Only sparse data exist concerning cellular magnesium and phosphate concentrations in hypertensive cells. In aortic smooth muscle cells from 10 SHRs of the Münster strain and 10 age-matched normotensive WKY rats, the intracellular phosphate and magnesium content was measured by electron probe X-ray microanalysis (Camscan CS 24 apparatus, Cambridge, U.K.). The Mg++ content was 0.90+/-0.15 g/kg dry weight in SHRs versus 1.15+/-0.10 g/kg dry weight in WKY rats (p<0.05). Vascular smooth muscle phosphate content was 23.6+/-0.79 g/kg dry weight in WKY rats versus 15.81+/-1.22 g/kg dryweight in SHRs (p<0.01). In seven animals, erythrocytic ATP content was 180.2+/-102 in SHRs vs. 432+/-72 micromol/L cells in WKY rats (p< 0.01). The Na+/K+-ATPase activity was significantly decreased in hypertensive animals as compared to controls (6.49+/-2.3 vs. 12.64+/-2.9 nmol inorganic phosphate/mg protein/min (p< 0.01)). Aortic smooth muscle cells from SHRs are characterized by markedly lowered cellular phosphate and magnesium concentrations and an altered ATP metabolism, possibly due to a membrane defect or a magnesium deficit in hypertensive cells.     

Catecholamines in pericardial fluid of normotensive, spontaneously hypertensive and reserpine-treated rats

In this study our aims were to investigate the presence and source of catecholamines in pericardial fluid of normotensive, reserpine-treated and spontaneously hypertensive rats. We found that noradrenaline is the only detectable catecholamine present in rat pericardial fluid. The effect of reserpine 6, 12, and 214 h after pre-treatment with 5 mg kg(-1) (8.2 micromol kg(-1)) i.p. shows that the concentration of noradrenaline in pericardial fluid reflects the amount of noradrenaline released within the heart rather than the amount of noradrenaline in plasma. Using spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) as a model for primary hypertension we could show that the level of pericardial noradrenaline is approximately threefold in the pericardial fluid of the SHRs when compared to respective values of age-matched normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY), suggesting that there was an increased noradrenaline overflow in the hearts of the SHRs. In conclusion, determination of the noradrenaline concentration in the pericardial fluid might provide a new method for estimating the release of noradrenaline in the heart.     

Behavioral reactivity in spontaneously hypertensive rats

Spontaneously hypertensive rats of the Okamoto strain (SHR) were compared with inbred normotensive rats of the Wistar-Kyoto strain (WKY) and with normally bred Wistar rats (NT) in tests on the audiogenic immobility reaction (freezing), open-field behavior in a dark and an enlightened arena respectively, auditory startle response and male sexual behavior. Compared to the WKYs the SHRs showed increased locomotion and rearing in the open-field situations, reduced startle response and shortened immobility reaction. The SHRs differed in the same way from the NT rats with the exception for motor activity in the dark arena, where no differences were observed. The WKY rats showed less motor activity than the NT animals. Both SH and WKY rats showed shorter latency time for ejaculation than the NT rats. The characteristics of the behavior patterns displayed by the SH rats were interpreted as indicating a reduced propensity for fear reactions in this strain of rats compared to the WKY and NT strains used in the present study.     

Increased blood pressure during potassium depletion in normotensive men

Epidemiologic studies suggest an inverse relation between potassium intake and the prevalence of hypertension. To investigate the effect of dietary potassium restriction on blood pressure, we used a randomized crossover design to study 10 healthy, normotensive men randomly assigned to isocaloric diets (each lasting nine days) providing either low (10 mmol per day) or normal (90 mmol per day) amounts of potassium, while sodium intake was maintained at the subjects' usual levels (120 to 200 mmol per day). With the low-potassium diet, plasma potassium levels declined from 3.8 to 3.2 mmol per liter (P less than 0.001), but plasma sodium and chloride levels were unchanged. The average daily excretion of urinary sodium (+/- SEM) on the low-potassium diet was significantly lower than that with the normal-potassium diet (10 +/- 10 vs. 144 +/- 10 mmol; P less than 0.001). The mean arterial pressure did not change significantly during normal potassium intake, but it increased over the nine days of the low-potassium diet from 90.9 +/- 2.2 to 95.0 +/- 2.2 mm Hg (P less than 0.05). Both mean arterial (P less than 0.01) and diastolic (P less than 0.005) pressures were significantly higher after the low-potassium diet than after the normal-potassium diet. Potassium depletion suppressed plasma aldosterone levels but had no effect on plasma renin activity or on arginine vasopressin or catecholamine levels. A saline infusion further increased the mean arterial pressure in the potassium-depleted subjects but had no effect in the control group (P less than 0.05). We conclude that short-term potassium depletion increases blood pressure in healthy, normotensive men and permits further increases in blood pressure after saline loading. We found no evidence that the hypertensive effect of potassium depletion resulted from changes in either renal hemodynamics or circulating levels of vasoactive hormones.