title: Differential effects on nitric oxide-mediated vasodilation in mesenteric and uterine arteries from cytomegalovirus-infected mice.
abstract: Chronic cytomegalovirus (CMV) infections are implicated in vascular diseases. Recently, we showed that an active mouse CMV (mCMV) infection in nonpregnant mice increased endothelial-dependent vasodilation in isolated mesenteric and uterine arteries. In late pregnancy, while increased vasodilation was found in mesenteric arteries from infected mice, there was a dramatic decrease in uterine arteries. Understanding the mechanisms for these vascular changes during CMV infections is important for pregnancy outcomes and long-term consequences of this chronic infection. Increased nitric oxide (NO) is implicated in CMV-associated atherosclerosis, and CMV replication is dependent on prostaglandin H synthase (PGHS) activity. Alternatively, CMV infections decrease NO under inflammatory conditions. We therefore hypothesized that changes in the contribution by NO or PGHS-induced vasodilators would explain the increased or decreased endothelial-dependent vasodilation in arteries from nonpregnant and late pregnant mice, respectively. We found that the contribution by NO to methacholine-induced vasodilation was significantly increased in mesenteric, but not uterine, arteries isolated from nonpregnant and pregnant mCMV-infected mice. Prostaglandin inhibition did not affect endothelial-dependent vasodilation in any group. Vasodilation responses to sodium nitroprusside, an NO donor, were increased in mesenteric and uterine arteries isolated only from mCMV-infected nonpregnant mice. These results explain the increased vasodilation responses observed in mesenteric arteries from mCMV-infected mice; however, the decreased vasodilation in uterine arteries from pregnant mice could not be explained by these mechanisms. Thus CMV infection affects the contribution of NO differently in endothelial-dependent vasodilation in pregnant compared with nonpregnant mice and also in the mesenteric compared with the uterine vascular bed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Randi B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Gombos
authors.forename: Denise G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Hemmings
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003587:Cytomegalovirus; D003586:Cytomegalovirus Infections / Q000378:metabolism*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004730:Endothelium, Vascular / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D008638:Mesenteric Arteries / Q000378:metabolism*; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D009569:Nitric Oxide / Q000378:metabolism*; D020030:Nitric Oxide Donors / Q000494:pharmacology; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000378:metabolism; D009599:Nitroprusside / Q000494:pharmacology; D011247:Pregnancy; D011270:Pregnancy, Animal / Q000378:metabolism*; D011451:Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases / Q000378:metabolism; D011453:Prostaglandins / Q000378:metabolism; D055988:Uterine Artery / Q000378:metabolism*; D014664:Vasodilation / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D020030:Nitric Oxide Donors; D011453:Prostaglandins; D009599:Nitroprusside; D009569:Nitric Oxide; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D011451:Prostaglandin-Endoperoxide Synthases