Nitric oxide and preglomerular vascular lesions in lyon spontaneously hypertensive rats

Candesartan prevents L-NAME-induced cardio-renal injury in spontaneously hypertensive rats beyond hypotensive effects

Our goal was to assess the cardiovascular and renal protection afforded by angiotensin II type 1-receptor blockade against NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME)-exacerbated hypertension in young spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), in comparison with the antihypertensive drug, hydralazine. Male SHR were assigned to four groups (n=8 per group): no treatment (controls); L-NAME-treated group (20 mg/kg/day, 10 days, orally); co-treatment with L-NAME and hydralazine (15 mg/kg/day, by gavage); co-treatment with L-NAME and candesartan cilexetil (10 mg/kg/day, by gavage), i.e. at a dose that inhibited acute pressor responses to 5—20 ng angiotensin II. One animal died in the L-NAME group, and tail-cuff systolic blood pressure (SBP) increased significantly compared with controls to 201±5 mmHg. Albumin excretion increased 235-fold in L-NAME-treated rats. Heart weight index averaged 3.5±0.1 and 3.8±0.1 mg/g body weight (p<0.05) in control and L-NAME rats, respectively, indicating moderate cardiac hypertrophy induced by L-NAME. Preglomerular vascular lesions affected 63±6% of interlobular arteries and 10±2% of afferent arterioles (vs. 8±3 and 0.8±0.4% in controls, respectively). Hydralazine and candesartan cilexetil treatment similarly reduced SBP to 153±7, and 165±6 mmHg, respectively. However, candesartan provided more protection, in terms of no significant change in albuminuria (vs. 25-fold increase with hydralazine), regression of cardiac hypertrophy, frequency of vascular lesions and histological indices of renal injury maintained within control values. In conclusion, candesartan cilexetil prevented L-NAME-exacerbated hypertension and associated cardio-renal injury in young SHR, the beneficial effects exceeding those of hydralazine.

Anti-lipid deposition effect of HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, pitavastatin, in a rat model of hypertension and hypercholesterolemia

Since the rat is an atherosclerosis-resistant species, the study of atherosclerosis using rats is limited. The present study was undertaken to develop an atherosclerotic model in rats, to investigate the effect of nitric oxide (NO) inactivation and hyperlipidemia, and to evaluate the effect of pitavastatin, a 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase (HMG-CoA reductase) inhibitor, on NO inactivation and on hyperlipidemia-induced changes in the cardiovascular system. Four-month-old male spontaneously hypertensive hyperlipidemic rats (SHHR) and Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were used to study 1) the effect of the period of treatment with N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME, 100 mg/L) on high fat diet (HFD)-treated SHHR and SD rats, and 2) the effect of pitavastatin (Pit, 0.3 mg/kg/day) on the changes in the aorta of L-NAME- and HFD-treated SHHR and SD rats. L-NAME administration for 1 month then HFD feeding for 2 months markedly increased the deposition of lipids and the thickness of the endothelium in SHHR. Continuous L-NAME treatment with HFD produced severe injury and stripped of endothelium in both strains. The plasma total cholesterol of L-NAME + HFD-treated and L-NAME + HFD + Pit-treated SHHR was significantly higher than that of control SHHR. Lipid deposition, however, was comparatively less in the aorta of L-NAME + HFD + Pit-treated SHHR. The concentration of cholesterol in the aorta of control SHHR was significantly lower than that in the aorta of L-NAME + HFD-treated SHHR, whereas that of L-NAME + HFD + Pit-treated SHHR was the same as that in control SHHR. These data indicated that Pit blocked lipid deposition in the aorta of L-NAME + HFD treated SHHR without changing plasma lipid profiles. In conclusion, NO inactivation and HFD induce lipid deposition in the endothelium, and the HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor blocks the deposition in SHHR.