title: Cardiovascular adaptations to parabolic flight in rats:  a radio-telemetry feasibility study.
abstract: This experiment was a feasibility study which consisted in investigating arterial blood pressure and heart rate to transient and repeated exposure to microgravity in eight unrestrained rats previously implanted with radio-telemetry transmitter. The aim was to perform such recordings throughout all the phases of a parabola during parabolic flights. This study revealed that it was possible to collect the radio-signal without any interference with electronic or magnetic environment. We observed in microgravity a significant reduction in heart rate (6%) and a significant increase in arterial blood pressure (7%). In conclusion, such a study seems to be feasible during longer exposure to microgravity (space flight) in order to study the cardiovascular adaptation in rat.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physiologie de l'Environnement, Faculte de Medecine, Lyon, France.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Somody
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fagette
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Frutoso
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gharib
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Blanquie
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Gharib
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Thierion
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Gauquelin
mesh_terms: D000222:Adaptation, Physiological; D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000502:physiology*; D002320:Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; D004867:Equipment Design; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D006339:Heart Rate / Q000502:physiology*; D018471:Hypergravity; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013026:Space Flight / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013686:Telemetry / Q000295:instrumentation*; D014893:Weightlessness