1. Association of central arterial stiffness with hippocampal blood flow and N-acetyl aspartate concentration in hypertensive adult Dahl salt sensitive rats
- Author
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Christopher H. Morrell, Olga V. Fedorova, Rachel Fenner, Edward G. Lakatta, Defne Cezayirli, Kenneth W. Fishbein, Richard G. Spencer, Samuel Ajamu, Mustapha Bouhrara, and Yulia Grigorova
- Subjects
Male ,medicine.medical_specialty ,hypertension ,N-acetyl aspartate ,Physiology ,hippocampus ,ORIGINAL PAPERS: Basic science ,brain metabolites ,pulse wave velocity ,Cerebral arteries ,cerebral blood flow ,Blood Pressure ,Pulse Wave Analysis ,Vascular Stiffness ,Internal medicine ,neuronal density ,Internal Medicine ,medicine ,Hippocampus (mythology) ,Plethysmograph ,magnetic resonance imaging ,Animals ,cardiovascular diseases ,Cognitive decline ,Dahl salt-sensitive rats ,Aspartic Acid ,Rats, Inbred Dahl ,business.industry ,aging ,arterial blood pressure ,Blood flow ,medicine.disease ,Rats ,Blood pressure ,arterial stiffness ,Cerebral blood flow ,nervous system ,Arterial stiffness ,Cardiology ,cardiovascular system ,Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine ,business ,circulatory and respiratory physiology - Abstract
Background Central arterial stiffness (CAS) is associated with elevated arterial blood pressure (BP) and is likely associated with stiffening of cerebral artery walls, with attendant cerebral hypoperfusion, neuronal density loss and cognitive decline. Dahl salt-sensitive (Dahl-S) rats exhibit age-associated hypertension and memory loss, even on a normal salt intake.Method: We sought to explore whether central arterial pulse wave velocity (PWV), a marker of CAS, is associated with hippocampal cerebral blood flow (CBF) and neuronal density in hypertensive Dahl-S rats. We measured systolic BP (by tail-cuff plethysmography), aortic PWV (by echocardiography) and CBF and N-acetyl aspartate (NAA) (by magnetic resonance imaging) in 6 month-old male Dahl-S rats (n = 12). Results Greater PWV was significantly associated with lower CBF and lower NAA concentration in the hippocampus, supporting a role of CAS in cerebrovascular dysfunction and decline in cognitive performance with aging. Conclusion These findings implicate increased CAS in cerebral hypoperfusion and loss of neuronal density and function in the Dahl-S model of age-associated cardiovascular dysfunction.
- Published
- 2021