Heterogeneity in Morphological Characteristics of Coronary Arteries and Aortae in Various Models of Hypertension

Husken BCP, van der Wal AC, Teeling P, Mathy M-J, Mertens MJF, Pijl AJ, Pfaffendorf M, van Zwieten PA. Heterogeneity in morphological characteristics of coronary arteries and aortae in various models of hypertension.Objective: Hypertension is associated with important structural and functional changes in vascular smooth muscle. The question arises whether different vascular beds and different models of hypertension react similarly or in a heterogeneous manner to the hypertensive state. Methods: We quantitatively investigated the morphology of the coronary arteries and thoracic aortae taken from 4, 30 and 52-week-old spontaneously hypersensitive rats (SHR) and Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY), respectively, and from hypertensive rats with aortic stenosis (ASR). Results: In coronary arteries taken from the SHR the media area was slightly increased compared with those obtained from the age-matched WKY. Increasing age caused a significant increase in media area of the SHR vessels, but not in WKY tissues. No difference...