Circulating factors, such as agonistic autoantibodies to the angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptor (AT1-AAs), and inflammatory cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor (TNF), are suggested to be important links between placental ischemia and hypertension in preeclamptic women. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of placental ischemia and TNFin stimulating the AT1-AA and the imp...

Pregnancy is associated with increases in maternal cardiac output and plasma volume and a reduction in peripheral vascular resistance. Cardiac output and plasma volume are substantially reduced in pregnant rats fed a low-protein diet, but it is not known whether vascular function is also compromised. We have investigated vascular function in virgin and pregnant Wistar rats subjected to dietary ...

The essential metal copper, zinc and iron content in starved virgin and pregnant rat tissue has been studied. The copper content of the whole rat, which was actually increased in pregnant rats, decreased in starved pregnant rats. The differences were significant in 19-day pregnant rats. The total copper content of the conceptus was not affected by starvation. Iron distribution and net tissue co...

Hines, Tina, and William A. Herzer. Effect of cardiac receptor stimulation on renal vascular resistance in the pregnant rat. Am. J. Physiol. Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol. 278: R171–R178, 2000.—Stimulation of cardiac receptors (CR) evokes blunted reflex reductions in mean arterial pressure (MAP) in pregnant compared with virgin rats. Because CR-mediated sympathoinhibition has preferentia...

Our previous work on aldosterone secretion suggested that dihydropyridine-sensitive calcium channels, one type of voltage-dependent calcium channels (VDCC), are functionally impaired in adrenal capsule preparations from the pregnant rat. The aim of this study was to determine whether, during pregnancy, the density and/or activity of these channels is altered in the adrenal zona glomerulosa. The...

Hyperhomocysteinemia is an important risk factor for preeclampsia-eclampsia. This study established a pregnant rat model of hyperhomocysteinemia, in which blood plasma homocysteine concentrations were twice or three times greater than that of normal pregnant rats. TUNEL revealed an increase in the number of apoptotic cells in the frontal cortex of pregnant rats with hyperhomocysteinemia. In add...

OBJECTIVE To examine the effect of prior pregnancy and lactation on bone density in aged rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS 2 month-old female Fischer-344 rats were divided into 4 groups: 1)13 rats were allowed to get pregnant and to nurse their offspring for two or three cycles; 2)14 rats were allowed to get pregnant two or three times and were immediately separated from their young after each deli...

OBJECTIVE Present study investigated the effects of parsley extract on pregnant rat kidneys which have undergone clinical abortion using prostaglandins. The renal protective effect of parsley extract was evaluated in pregnant rats which had an abortion. Parsley was used due to its antioxidant properties. MATERIALS AND METHODS Fifty-four female rats were divided in 9 groups of 6: control pregn...

Fragments of DNA present in food and feed are taken up by the gastrointestinal tract (GIT) of mammals. The extent of uptake varies according to organism, study design and DNA source. This study explores the hypothesis that actively growing, as well as pregnant rats, are more likely to take up DNA from the GIT than mature animals due to the high demand for nutrients for tissue and organ developm...

Serum lipoproteins of pregnant and puerperal rats were studied by preparative and analytical ultracentrifugation. The concentration for the fraction with density less than 1.019 was markedly elevated in rats during the 3rd wk of gestation and in lactating rats. This fraction showed similar triglyceride fatty acid composition and immunoelectrophoretic behavior whether it was derived from pregnan...