Abstract
The aim of the present study was to investigate the participation of the celiac artery vascular bed in the hypertension of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). In conscious SHR and normotensive control rats (NCR), celiac blood flow and arterial pressure were measured with an implanted electromagnetic flow probe and an indwelling arterial catheter. Celiac peripheral resistance (CeR) was calculated as arterial pressure divided by celiac flow. The relative increase of celiac resistance in SHR compared with NCR was less than the increase in total peripheral resistance. That is, participation of CeR in the hypertension was below the average for the whole body. The decrease in local conductance (inverse of resistance) in SHR compared with NCR was calculated to be about 5% of that of total conductance. The contribution of CeR to the hypertension was thus quantitatively about 5%. Ganglionic blockade with hexamethonium bromide decreased CeR more markedly in SHR than in NCR, which suggests an important role of sympathetic nerves in the increased CeR in SHR. ( Hypertens Res 1993; 16: 265-268)
