title: Post-myocardial infarction left ventricular myocyte remodeling: are there gender differences in rats?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Previous studies have shown gender differences in left ventricular remodeling after myocardial infarction. Results are varied, however, and reliable, comprehensive data for changes in cardiac myocyte shape are not available.
  
  
  METHODS
  Young adult female and male Sprague-Dawley rats were used in this study and randomly assigned to the myocardial infarction and sham myocardial infarction groups. Myocardial infarction was produced by ligation of the left descending coronary artery. Four weeks after surgery, left ventricular echocardiography and hemodynamics were performed before isolating myocytes for size determination.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In general, left ventricular functional changes after myocardial infarction were comparable. Females developed slightly, but significantly, more left ventricular hypertrophy than males, and this was reflected by the relative increases in left ventricular myocyte volume. In both males and females, however, myocyte hypertrophy was due exclusively to lengthening of myocytes with no change in myocyte cross-sectional area.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study demonstrates that post-myocardial infarction changes in LV function and myocyte remodeling are remarkably similar in young adult male and female rats.
authors.affiliation: Cardiovascular Health Research Center, Sanford Research/University of South Dakota, 1100 East 21st Street, Suite 700, Sioux Falls, SD 57105, USA.
authors.forename: Yue-Feng
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Rebecca A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Redetzke
authors.forename: Ryan M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Sivertson
authors.forename: Tamora S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Coburn
authors.forename: Luke R
authors.initials: LR
authors.lastname: Cypher
authors.forename: Anthony Martin
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Gerdes
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004452:Echocardiography; D005260:Female; D006439:Hemodynamics; D008297:Male; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D032383:Myocytes, Cardiac / Q000473:pathology*; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012737:Sex Factors; D016277:Ventricular Function, Left; D020257:Ventricular Remodeling