Tissue distribution and localization of natriuretic peptide receptor subtypes in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats.
OBJECTIVE
To investigate tissue distribution and localization of the natriuretic peptide receptor (NPR) subtypes' messenger RNA (mRNA) and to compare their expression between stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR-SP) and Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats.


METHODS
Total RNA was extracted from organs of SHR-SP and WKY rats aged 13 weeks. The mRNA level was examined by RNase protection assay. The localization of the transcripts was determined by in-situ hybridization.


RESULTS
In SHR-SP aged 13 weeks, NPR-A was expressed most abundantly in the adrenal gland, lung and aorta, in that order. NPR-B was expressed highly in the uterus and ovary, and also in the lung, adrenal, and brain. NPR-C was expressed predominantly in the atrium and mesentery, less so in the lung, vein, and kidney. In the adrenal gland, NPR-A was expressed mainly in zona glomerulosa cells. In the atrium, NPR-C was expressed throughout the wall. In the mesentery, NPR-C mRNA was detected mainly in adipocytes. In the kidney, NPR-C was found predominantly in podocytes. Whereas the levels of expression of NPR subtypes in most tissues examined did not differ between SHR-SP and WKY rats, the NPR-C mRNA level was significantly greater in the kidneys of SHR-SP than it was in those of WKY rats.


CONCLUSIONS
These results indicated that each NPR subtype had a distinct tissue distribution pattern and that the expression of NPR-C in the kidneys of SHR-SP was greater than that in the kidneys of WKY rats.
Nagase
M
M
Fourth Department of Internal Medicine, University of Tokyo School of Medicine, Japan.
Katafuchi
T
T
Hirose
S
S
Fujita
T
T
D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure; D001835:Body Weight; D005260:Female; D015870:Gene Expression; D006973:Hypertension / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis; D051381:Rats; D011918:Rats, Inbred SHR; D011921:Rats, Inbred WKY; D017461:Receptors, Atrial Natriuretic Factor / Q000145:classification* / Q000235:genetics
D012333:RNA, Messenger; D017461:Receptors, Atrial Natriuretic Factor