Jc. Frisbee et Jh. Lombard, Reduced renal mass hypertension, but not high salt diet, alters skeletal muscle arteriolar distensibility and myogenic responses, MICROVASC R, 59(2), 2000, pp. 255-264
The effects of high salt diet and reduced renal mass hypertension (RRM-HT)
on skeletal muscle arteriolar distensibility and myogenic responses were in
vestigated in male Sprague-Dawley rats. Rats were enclosed in an airtight b
ox with the in situ cremaster muscle exteriorized and viewed via television
microscopy. Normotensive rats were fed low salt (0.4% NaCl) or high salt (
4.0% NaCl) diet and RRM-HT rats were fed high salt diet for 4-6 weeks. With
the cremaster muscle superfused with either physiological salt solution (f
or myogenic responses) or Ca2+-free physiological salt solution (for arteri
olar distensibility), box pressure (and therefore, intravascular pressure)
was increased in 5 mm Hg increments to a maximum of +30 mm Hg. The myogenic
responses of arterioles were not altered by high salt diet, but were enhan
ced with RRM-HT. Arteriolar distensibility was not affected by high salt di
et, but was reduced in RRM-HT rats compared to either normotensive rat grou
p. These data suggest that high salt diet does not significantly alter eith
er myogenic responses or the distensibility of rat cremasteric arterioles.
However, RRM-HT enhances myogenic responses of these vessels while reducing
arteriolar distensibility. The impact of these effects must be taken into
account when interpreting data describing alterations in skeletal muscle mi
crovessel reactivity for animals on high salt diet or with RRM hypertension
. (C) 2000 Academic Press.