Abstract
Abstract
Samples of abdominal skin from SHR, WKY, and NW rats were examined to determine: (a) if gross structural differences were apparent among the cutanous vascular beds of the three strains of rats, and (b) if the structural differences were generalized or localized to a specific level of the vascular tree. The most significant differences among the three strains of rats were at the level of the smallest (fourth-order) arterioles. The SHR had 30% fewer of the smallest arterioles than WKY and 38% fewer than NW. However, the smallest arterioles from SHR had diameters 22 and 26% larger than similar vessels from WKY and NW, respectively. Consequently, there were no significant differences in calculated resistance among vessels from the three strains of rats. No significant differences were found in the vessel branching angles among the three strains of rats either. It cannot be determined from these studies whether the genetic mechanism responsible for the differences in arteriolar numbers and diameters observed among these highly inbred strains of rats is related to the genetic mechanism responsible for hypertension in SHR.
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