A new model of diabetic pregnancy with genetic hypertension: pregnancy in spontaneously hypertensive rats with neonatal streptozotocin-induced diabetes.
OBJECTIVE
We designed this study to develop a new animal model of high-risk pregnancy complicated by hypertension and diabetes mellitus.


METHODS
Female spontaneously hypertensive rats were injected intraperitoneally with 75 mg/kg streptozotocin or vehicle as control at 2 days of age. They were mated with untreated male spontaneously hypertensive rats at 4 to 5 months of age.


RESULTS
Hyperglycemia, defined as > 20 mmol/L plasma glucose level, was maintained during pregnancy in streptozotocin-treated spontaneously hypertensive rats, and systolic blood pressure was significantly higher in the streptozotocin-treated group than in controls before delivery (p < 0.01). Furthermore, urinary albumin excretion was significantly increased in the streptozotocin-treated group during and after pregnancy compared with the prepregnant level (p < 0.05), whereas in controls it remained unchanged. The incidence of low birth weight was significantly higher in male neonates from streptozotocin-treated mothers than those from control mothers (p < 0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
Neonatally streptozotocin-treated spontaneously hypertensive rats may be useful for studying the combined effect of hypertension and diabetes mellitus during pregnancy.
Second Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan.
M
M
Wada
M
M
Iwase
M
M
Wakisaka
K
K
Nunoi
M
M
Yoshinari
M
M
Fujishima
D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications*; D007774:Lactation / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D011249:Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular / Q000097:blood; D011254:Pregnancy in Diabetics / Q000097:blood / Q000150:complications*; D051381:Rats; D011918:Rats, Inbred SHR
D001786:Blood Glucose