We investigated the angiotensin II (Ang II)-generating system by analyzing the vasoconstrictor effect of Ang II, angiotensin J (Ang I), and tetradecapeptide (TDP) renin substrate in the absence and presence of inhibitors of the renin-angiotensin system in isolated rat aortic rings and mesenteric arterial beds with and without functional endothelium. Ang II, Ang I, and TDP elicited a dose-depend...

In the glycerol model of renal injury we describe an acute rise in systemic arterial pressure which is attended by a reduced vasodilatory response to acetylcholine in vivo; vasodilatory responses to verapamil, however, were not impaired. Neither arginine nor sodium nitroprusside diminished this rise in blood pressure; N(omega)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME) elevated basal mean arterial ...

During normal pregnancy, in contrast to preeclampsia, plasma hemopexin activity is increased together with a decreased vascular angiotensin II receptor (AT(1)) expression. We now tested the hypothesis that hemopexin can downregulate the AT(1) receptor in vitro. Analysis of human monocytes or endothelial cells by flow cytometry showed decreased membrane density of AT(1) exclusively after incubat...

The aim of this study was to examine some in vivo and in vitro cardiovascular effects of Helichrysum ceres leaf ethanolic extract (HCE) in experimental animal paradigms. The acute effects of HCE on blood pressure were studied in anaesthetised normotensive male Wistar rats challenged with intravenous hypotonic saline infusion after a 3.5-hour equilibration for four hours of one-hour control, 1.5...

Diabetes mellitus is a complex disease characterised by chronic hyperglycaemia due to compromised insulin synthesis and secretion, or decreased tissue sensitivity to insulin, if not all three conditions. Endothelial dysfunction is a common complication in diabetes in which endothelium-dependent vasodilation is impaired. The aim of this study was to examine the involvement of TRPV4 in diabetes e...

Increased generation of oxidants and (or) reduced endogenous antioxidant defense mechanisms are associated with the etiology of diabetic vascular complications. The aim of the present study was to evaluate whether curcumin supplementation increases the vasodilatory effect of cilostazol in streptozotocin induced diabetic rat aorta. Cumulative addition of cilostazol caused concentration-dependent...

Conventional peritoneal dialysis solutions (PDS) are vasoactive. This study was conducted to identify vasoactive components of PDS and to describe quantitatively such vasoactivity. Anesthetized nonheparinized rats were monitored continuously for hemodynamics while the microvasculature of the jejunum was studied with in vivo intravital microscopy. In separate experiments, vascular reactivity of ...

Tridax procumbens leaf extract induced aortic relaxation in a concentration-dependent manner, for both phenylephrine (PE) and KCl- induced contractions in isolated rat aortic rings. The relaxation effect of the extract on PE-induced contraction was 57% greater than that on KCl- induced contraction. The extract caused dose-dependent relaxations in precontracted isolated rat aorta with phenylephr...

We investigated long-lasting changes in endothelial and vascular function in adult rat survivors of severe sepsis induced by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) model. For this, male Wistar rats (200-350g) had their cecum punctured once (non-transfixing hole) with a 14-gauge needle. Performed in this way, a mortality rate around 30% was achieved in the first 72h. The survivors, together with age-...

INTRODUCTION DHPEE is a newly synthesized compound by merging the key structural elements in an angiotensin receptor blocker (Telmisartan) with key structural elements in 1,4- dihydropyridine calcium channel blocker (Nifedipine). In this study, we examined dual calcium channel blocking and AT1 antagonist activity for DHPEE. METHODS The functional inhibitory characteristics of DHPEE were studi...