Abstract P145: Renal Inflammation and Injury is Associated with Increased Lymphangiogenesis in Hypertension

Hypertension is associated with immune system activation and inflammation. Renal infiltration of both innate and adaptive immune cells contributes to injury, dysfunction, and increased blood pressure. Activated immune cells that exit blood vessels into the interstitium then travel through lymphatic vessels to draining lymph nodes where they signal to other immune cells to increase the immune response. It is unknown how renal lymphatic vessels change in the context of hypertension, immune system activation, inflammation, and injury. We hypothesized that renal macrophage infiltration, inflammation, and injury would significantly increase lymphangiogenesis in various strains of rats. SHR rats that exhibit hypertension and renal injury (SHR-A3 strain) had significantly increased numbers of renal lymphatic vessels at 40 weeks of age compared to WKY controls (total of 3 fields of view: 52 ± 1 vs. 28 ± 1; p<0.05). This was associated with increased renal macrophage infiltration. SHR rats that exhibit hypertensio...