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ObjectiveParenchymal arterioles (PAs) regulate perfusion of the cerebral microcirculation, and impaired PA endothelium-dependent dilation occurs in dementia models mimicking chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH). Epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (EETs) are vasodilators; their actions are potentiated by soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) inhibition. We hypothesized that chronic sEH inhibition with trifluoromethoxyphenyl-3 (1-propionylpiperidin-4-yl) urea (TPPU) would prevent cognitive dysfunction and improve PA dilation in a hypertensive CCH model.MethodsBilateral carotid artery stenosis (BCAS) was used to induce CCH in twenty-week-old male stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHSRP) that were treated with vehicle or TPPU for 8 weeks. Cognitive function was assessed by novel object recognition. PA dilation and structure were assessed by pressure myography, and mRNA expression in brain tissue was assessed by qRT-PCR.ResultsTPPU did not enhance resting cerebral perfusion, but prevented CCH-induced memory deficits. TPPU improved PA endothelium-dependent dilation but reduced the sensitivity of PAs to a nitric oxide donor. TPPU treatment had no effect on PA structure or biomechanical properties. TPPU treatment increased brain mRNA expression of brain derived neurotrophic factor, doublecortin, tumor necrosis factor-alpha, sEH, and superoxide dismutase 3, CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that sEH inhibitors may be viable treatments for cognitive impairments associated with hypertension and CCH.

Background: Nearly two-thirds of patients diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease (AD) are female. In addition, female patients with AD have more significant cognitive impairment than males at the same disease stage. This disparity suggests there are sex differences in AD progression. While females appear to be more affected by AD, most published behavioral studies utilize male mice. In humans, there is an association between antecedent attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder and increased risk of dementia. Functional connectivity studies indicate that dysfunctional cortico-striatal networks contribute to hyperactivity in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Higher plaque density in the striatum accurately predicts the presence of clinical AD pathology. In addition, there is a link between AD-related memory dysfunction and dysfunctional dopamine signaling. Objective: With the need to consider sex as a biological variable, we investigated the influence of sex on striatal plaque burden, dopaminergic signaling, and behavior in prodromal 5XFAD mice. Methods: Six-month-old male and female 5XFAD and C57BL/6J mice were evaluated for striatal amyloid plaque burden, locomotive behavior, and changes in dopaminergic machinery in the striatum. Results: 5XFAD female mice had a higher striatal amyloid plaque burden than male 5XFAD mice. 5XFAD females, but not males, were hyperactive. Hyperactivity in female 5XFAD mice was associated with increased striatal plaque burden and changes in dopamine signaling in the dorsal striatum. Conclusion: Our results indicate that the progression of amyloidosis involves the striatum in females to a greater extent than in males. These studies have significant implications for using male-only cohorts in the study of AD progression. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Medial thickening and vascular hypertrophy of resistance arteries can lead to cardiovascular complications associated with diabetes. While previous studies have established a role of Type 1 diabetes in vascular remodeling, we recently extended these observations to Type 2 diabetes and reported increased collagen deposition due to alterations in matrix metalloproteinase expression and activity in mesenteric resistance arteries. These studies also showed that remodeling response was mediated by endothelin-1 (ET-1) via activation of [ET.sub.A] receptors, whereas blockade of [ET.sub.B] receptors exacerbated the remodeling. However, the effectiveness of glycemic control strategies in preventing these vascular changes, including activation of the ET system still remained unclear. Also, very little is known about whether and to what extent reorganization of the extracellular matrix (ECM) affects vascular compliance and vasomotor tone. Accordingly, this study assessed structural remodeling of mesenteric microvessels, vascular compliance, and myogenic tone, as well as the role of matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) in mediating these processes. Spontaneously diabetic, non-obese Goto-Kakizaki (GK) rats, a model for Type 2 diabetes, and normoglycemic Wistar rats were used for the studies. A subset of GK rats were administered metformin to achieve euglycemia. Glycemic control normalized the increased media-to-lumen ratios (M/L) and myogenic tone seen in diabetes, as well as normalizing plasma ET-1 levels and mesenteric ETA receptor expression. There was increased collagen synthesis in diabetes paralleled by decreased collagenase MMP-13 activity, while glycemic control attenuated the process. These findings and our previous study taken together suggest that hyperglycemiamediated activation of ET-1 and [ET.sub.A] receptors alter vascular structure and mechanics in Type 2 diabetes. vascular remodeling; vascular compliance; glycemic control; extracellular matrix; endothelin receptors

Data from the Framingham Heart Study suggest that women may be more sensitive to the deleterious cardiovascular remodeling effects of aldosterone. Previous studies from our laboratory have shown that chronic treatment with spironolactone, a mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) antagonist, decreases ischemic cerebral infarct size and prevents remodeling of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) in male spontaneously hypertensive stroke-prone rats (SHRSP). Therefore, we hypothesized that MR antagonism would reduce ischemic infarct size and prevent MCA remodeling in female SHRSP. Six-week-old female SHRSP were treated for 6 wk with spironolactone (25 or 50 mg x [kg.sup.-1] x [day.sup.-1]) or eplerenone (100 mg x [kg.sup.-1] x [day.sup.-1]) and compared with untreated controls. At 12 wk, cerebral ischemia was induced for 18 h using the intraluminal suture occlusion technique, or the MCA was isolated for analysis of passive structure using a pressurized arteriograph. MR antagonism had no effect on infarct size or passive MCA structure in female SHRSP. To study the potential effects of estrogen, the above experiments were repeated in bilaterally ovariectomized (OVX) female SHRSP treated with spironolactone (25 mg x [kg.sup.-1] x [day.sup.-1]). Infarct size and vessel structure in OVX SHRSP were not different from control SHRSP. Spironolactone had no effect on infarct size in OVX SHRSP. However, MCA lumen and outer diameters were increased in spironolactone-treated OVX SHRSP, suggesting an effect of estrogen. Cerebral artery MR expression, assessed by Western blotting, was increased in female, compared with male, SHRSP. These studies highlight an apparent sexual dimorphism of MR expression and activity in the cerebral vasculature from hypertensive rats. sex differences; cerebral ischemia, vascular remodeling; spironolactone, eplerenone; spontaneously hypertensive stroke-prone rats; middle cerebral artery

High-potassium diets can improve vascular function, yet the effects of potassium supplementation on ischemic stroke have not been studied. We hypothesized that dietary potassium supplementation would reduce ischemic cerebral infarct size by reversing cerebral artery hypertrophy. Six-week-old male stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP) were fed diets containing 0.79% potassium (LK) or 2.11% potassium (HK) for 6 wk; Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats were fed the LK diet. The HK diet did not reduce blood pressure, as measured by telemetry, in the SHRSP. Cerebral ischemia was induced by middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion. The resultant infarct was smaller in the HK-SHRSP than in the LK-SHRSP: 55.1 [+ or -] 6.3 vs. 71.4 [+ or -] 2.4% of the hemisphere infarcted (P < 0.05). Infarcts were smaller in WKY rats (33.5 [+ or -] 4.8%) than in LK-SHRSP or HK-SHRSP. The vessel wall of MCAs from LK-SHRSP was hypertrophied compared with WKY rats; this was reversed in HK-SHRSP. RT-PCR analysis of the cerebral vessels showed that expression of platelet-derived growth factor receptors-[alpha] and -[beta], epidermal growth factor receptor, and collagen I and III was increased in the vessels from LK-SHRSP compared with WKY rats and reduced in HK-SHRSP. These results suggest that potassium supplementation provides neuroprotection in a model of ischemic stroke independent of blood pressure and possibly through changes in vascular structure. middle cerebral artery occlusion; cerebral ischemia; smooth muscle cells; spontaneously hypertensive rats; growth factors

Studies suggest iron exacerbates the damage caused by ischemic stroke. Our aim was to elucidate the effect of iron overload on infarct size after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAO) and to evaluate the efficacy of tempol, a superoxide dismutase mimetic, as a neuroprotective agent. Rats were administered iron [+ or -] tempol before MCAO; control rats received saline. The middle cerebral artery was occluded for 24 h, and the size of the resultant infarct was assessed and expressed as the percentage of the hemisphere infracted (%HI). Iron treatment increased infarct size compared with control (51.83 [+ or -] 3.55 vs. 27.56 [+ or -] 3.28%HI iron treated vs. control, P = 0.01); pretreatment with tempol reversed this (51.83 [+ or -] 3.55 vs. 26.09 [+ or -] 9.57%HI iron treated vs. iron + tempol treated, P = 0.02). We hypothesized that reactive oxygen species (ROS) were responsible for the iron-induced damage. We measured ROS generated by exogenous iron in brain and peripheral vasculature from rats that had not undergone MCAO. There was no increase in ROS production in the brain of iron-treated rats or in brain slices incubated with iron citrate. However, ROS generation in carotid arteries incubated with iron citrate was significantly increased. ROS generation from the brain was assessed after MCAO by dihydroethidine staining; there was a dramatic increase in the ROS generation by the brain in the iron-treated rats compared with control 30 min after MCAO. We propose that iron-induced ROS generation in the cerebral vasculature adds to oxidative stress during an ischemic episode after the disruption of the blood-brain barrier. cerebral vasculature; iron overload; reactive oxygen species; cerebral ischemia

Mitchell, Brett M., Anne M. Dorrance, and R. Clinton Webb. GTP cyclohydrolase 1 inhibition attenuates vasodilation and increases blood pressure in rats. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol 285: H2165-H2170, 2003. First published July 10, 2003; 10.1152/ajpheart.00253.2003.-GTP cyclohydrolase 1 is the rate-limiting enzyme in production of tetrahydrobiopterin, a necessary cofactor for endothelial nitric oxide synthase. We tested the hypothesis that inhibition of tetrahydrobiopterin synthesis impairs endothelium-dependent relaxation and increase blood pressure in rats. 2,4-Diamino-6hydroxypyrimidine (DAHP), a GTP cyclohydrolase 1 inhibitor, was given in drinking water (~120 mg * [kg.sup.-1] * [day.sup.-1]) to male Sprague-Dawley rats for 3 days. Systolic blood pressures were measured (tail-cuff procedure) for 3 days before and each day during DAHP treatment. Blood pressure was significantly increased after DAHP treatment (122 [+ or -] 2 vs. 154 [+ or -] 3 mmHg before and after DAHP, respectively; P < 0.05). Endothelium-intact aortic segments from pentobarbital sodium-anesthetized rats were isolated and hung in organ chambers for measurement of isometric force generation. Aortas from DAHP-treated rats exhibited a decreased maximal relaxation to ACh compared with controls [% relaxation from phenylephrine ([10.sup.-7] M)-induced contraction: DAHP 57 [+ or -] 6% vs. control 79 [+ or -] 4%; P < 0.05]. Relaxation responses to A-23187 were also decreased in aortas from DAHP-treated rats compared with controls. Incubation with sepiapterin ([10.sup.-4] M, 1 h), which produces tetrahydrobiopterin via a salvage pathway, restored relaxation to ACh in aortas from DAHP-treated rats. Superoxide dismutase significantly increased ACh-induced relaxation in aortas from DAHPtreated rats, whereas catalase had no effect. Endotheliumindependent relaxation to sodium nitroprusside in aortas from DAHP-treated rats was not different from control rats; however, nitric oxide synthase inhibition increased sensitivity to sodium nitroprusside in aortas from DAHP-treated rats. These results support the hypothesis that GTP cyclohydrolase 1 inhibition decreases relaxation and increases blood pressure in rats. tetrahydrobiopterin; nitric oxide synthase; endothelium; experimental hypertension