title: Aortic wall remodeling in rats with nitric oxide deficiency treated by enalapril or verapamil.
abstract: Twenty mature male Wistar rats were maintained alive for 40 days, separated in four groups of five rats each: control, L-NAME (LN), L-NAME + Enalapril (LN + E), L-NAME + Verapamil (LN + V). Blood pressure (BP), left ventricular (LV) mass index, and aortic wall parameters were analyzed: aortic wall thickness, tunica media sectional area, surface density of lamellae (Sv[lamellae]), and smooth muscle cell nuclear profiles per section (SMC). At the end of the experiment, the LN group showed high BP and a high LV mass index (cardiac hypertrophy). The control group and the other groups showed significant differences in aortic wall thickness, tunica media sectional area, Sv[lamellae], and SMC. When comparing the LN group with both the LN + E group and the LN + V group, aortic thickness was not different. Tunica media sectional area and SMC differed between the LN group and the LN + E group. There were also differences between the LN group and the LN + V group in SMC. The Sv[lamellae] decreased in the following sequence: control group > LN group = LN + E group > LN + V group. In conclusion, treatment with enalapril and verapamil shows partial efficiency in preventing or treating aortic wall tunica media hypertrophy, suggesting that these alterations are due to a mechanism other than blood pressure control, where nitric oxide synthesis inhibition could be involved.
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Morfometria & Morfologia Cardiovascular, Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro, Centro Biomédico, Av 28 de Setembro, 87 fds. CEP:20551-030, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil. mandarim@uerj.br
authors.forename: Leila M M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.forename: Daniele G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Bezerra
authors.forename: Carlos A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Mandarim-de-Lacerda
mesh_terms: D000806:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000818:Animals; D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology*; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000187:drug effects; D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers / Q000494:pharmacology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D004656:Enalapril / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006352:Heart Ventricles / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D009131:Muscle, Smooth, Vascular / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D019331:NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester / Q000494:pharmacology; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000172:deficiency*; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D014700:Verapamil / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D000806:Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Inhibitors; D002121:Calcium Channel Blockers; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D004656:Enalapril; D014700:Verapamil; D019331:NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester