title: Enhanced sympathetic reactivity associates with insulin resistance in the young Zucker rat.
abstract: Somatosympathetic reflexes were studied in young hyperinsulinemic, insulin-resistant (Zucker fatty) rats (ZFR) and a related control (Zucker lean) strain (ZLR). Glucose metabolism was characterized by minimal model analysis of intravenous glucose tolerance test data. Seven-week-old ZFR (n=18) and ZLR (n=17) were studied under pentobarbital anesthesia. Mean body weight and plasma glucose and insulin concentration were significantly greater (P<0.05) in ZFR than in ZLR, whereas basal values of mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate (HR) were not significantly different. Increments of MAP (DeltaMAP) and HR (DeltaHR) elicited by electrical stimulation of the sciatic nerve (5-s trains of 100 pulses, 0.5-ms pulse duration, 100- to 400-microA pulse intensity) were significantly higher (ANOVA, P<0.05) in ZFR at each level of stimulus intensity. Regression analysis showed a linear increase in DeltaMAP and DeltaHR with increasing sciatic nerve stimulus intensity. Pressor responses to phenylephrine after ganglionic blockade demonstrated that vascular reactivity to adrenergic stimulation is not increased in ZFR compared with ZLR. Thus this factor does not contribute to enhancement of somatosympathetic reflexes observed in this strain. Insulin sensitivity in ZFR was one-fourth (P<0.05) that in ZLR. These results suggest that stronger sympathetic nervous reactivity in ZFR is associated with a severe insulin-resistant state before the onset of hypertension and support the hypothesis that insulin-mediated stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system is involved in the development of cardiovascular diseases related to alterations of glucose metabolism.
authors.affiliation: Section of Human Physiology, Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Genoa, Italy. ruggeri@unige.it
authors.forename: Piero
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ruggeri
authors.forename: Andrea
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Brunori
authors.forename: Carla E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Cogo
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Storace
authors.forename: Francesco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Di Nardo
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Burattini
mesh_terms: D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D001794:Blood Pressure; D001835:Body Weight; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D005951:Glucose Tolerance Test; D006339:Heart Rate; D007328:Insulin / Q000097:blood; D007333:Insulin Resistance; D008297:Male; D009765:Obesity / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010656:Phenylephrine / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D011924:Rats, Zucker; D013564:Sympathetic Nervous System / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology*; D018924:Vascular Capacitance / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D000316:Adrenergic alpha-Agonists; D001786:Blood Glucose; D007328:Insulin; D010656:Phenylephrine