VANADATE TREATMENT NORMALIZES EXAGGERATED VASCULAR SMOOTH-MUSCLE RESPONSES IN THE OBESE ZUCKER RAT

The effect of oral vanadate treatment on isometric tension responses w ere examined in aortic rings isolated from obese and lean Zucker rats. Rats from both strains that were either maintained on food ad libitum or pair-fed were included to serve as controls. Higher plasma insulin and glucose levels and exaggerated aortic tension responses to endoth elin-1, methoxamine, and KCl observed in obese Zucker rats were normal ized in vanadate treated, but not pair-fed, rats. These data suggest t hat abnormal vascular responses in obese Zucker rats can be normalized by vanadate treatment in a manner at least partly independent of food intake. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.