Genetic Influence on the Development of Renal Hypertension in Parabiotic Rats

The effects of several renal manipulations including uninephrectomy, unilateral renal artery constriction, and a combination of these two (Goldblatt procedure) were studied in two strains of rats with opposite constitutional predispositions to experimental hypertension. The protective value of intact renal tissue to protect against hypertension was shown to be genetically determined. The Goldblatt procedure carried out on only one member of a parabiotic pair induced hypertension in this operated rat but significant hypertension developed in the intact partner only when the operated animal belonged to the strain predisposed to hypertension. It was speculated that there were qualitative differences in the pressor signals of the two strains of rats. In the strain genetically predisposed to hypertension there are at least two pressor principles: (a) one which is common to both strains, not transmittable via the parabiosis junction and presumably related to the renin-angiotensin system; and (b) a second which is specific for the hypertension-prone strain and can be transmitted through the parabiosis junction. This transmittable agent is probably identical with the factor that produces salt hypertension and is associated with the salt-excreting mechanism.