Abnormal uterine artery remodelling in the stroke prone spontaneously hypertensive rat.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

The stroke prone spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHRSP) is an established model of human cardiovascular risk. We sought to characterise the uteroplacental vascular response to pregnancy in this model and determine whether this is affected by the pre-existing maternal hypertension.

Methods

Doppler ultrasound and myography were utilised to assess uterine artery functional and structural changes pre-pregnancy and at gestational day 18 in SHRSP (untreated and nifedipine treated) and in the normotensive Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rat. Maternal adaptations to pregnancy were also assessed along with histology and expression of genes involved in oxidative stress in the placenta.

Results

SHRSP uterine arteries had a pulsatile blood flow and were significantly smaller (709

SUBMITTER: Small HY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4721537 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature