title: Cardiovascular function in male and female JCR:LA-cp rats: effect of high-fat/high-sucrose diet.
abstract: Thirty percent of the world population is diagnosed with metabolic syndrome. High-fat/high-sucrose (HF/HS) diet (Western diet) correlates with metabolic syndrome prevalence. We characterized effects of the HF/HS diet on vascular (arterial stiffness, vasoreactivity, and coronary collateral development) and cardiac (echocardiography) function, oxidative stress, and inflammation in a rat model of metabolic syndrome (JCR rats). Furthermore, we determined whether male versus female animals were affected differentially by the Western diet. Cardiovascular function in JCR male rats was impaired versus normal Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats. HF/HS diet compromised cardiovascular (dys)function in JCR but not SD male rats. In contrast, cardiovascular function was minimally impaired in JCR female rats on normal chow. However, cardiovascular function in JCR female rats on the HF/HS diet deteriorated to levels comparable to JCR male rats on the HF/HS diet. Similarly, oxidative stress was markedly increased in male but not female JCR rats on normal chow but was equally exacerbated by the HF/HS diet in male and female JCR rats. These results indicate that the Western diet enhances oxidative stress and cardiovascular dysfunction in metabolic syndrome and eliminates the protective effect of female sex on cardiovascular function, implying that both males and females with metabolic syndrome are at equal risk for cardiovascular disease.NEW & NOTEWORTHYWestern diet abolished protective effect of sex against cardiovascular disease (CVD) development in premenopausal animals with metabolic syndrome. Western diet accelerates progression of CVD in male and female animals with preexisting metabolic syndrome but not normal animals. Exacerbation of baseline oxidative stress correlates with accelerated progression of CVD in metabolic syndrome animals on Western diet.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York.
authors.forename: Ian
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Hunter
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York.
authors.forename: Amanda
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Soler
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York.
authors.forename: Gregory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Joseph
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York.
authors.forename: Brenda
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hutcheson
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, Tuskegee University, Tuskegee, Alabama.
authors.forename: Chastity
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Bradford
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York.
authors.forename: Frank Fan
authors.initials: FF
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Physiology, Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center, New Orleans, Louisiana; and.
authors.forename: Barry
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Potter
authors.affiliation: Metabolic and Cardiovascular Diseases Laboratory, Alberta Institute for Human Nutrition, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
authors.forename: Spencer
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Proctor
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmacology, New York Medical College, Valhalla, New York; petra_rocic@nymc.edu.
authors.forename: Petra
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Rocic
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002320:Cardiovascular Physiological Phenomena; D003097:Collateral Circulation; D003326:Coronary Circulation / Q000187:drug effects; D059305:Diet, High-Fat / Q000009:adverse effects*; D019422:Dietary Sucrose / Q000633:toxicity*; D004452:Echocardiography; D005260:Female; D006321:Heart / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000187:drug effects / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007249:Inflammation / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology*; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D051381:Rats; D011919:Rats, Inbred Strains; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D059289:Vascular Stiffness / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D019422:Dietary Sucrose
keywords: Western diet; cardiovascular disease; metabolic syndrome; oxidative stress; sex differences