Salt moderation is often recommended to prevent excessive increases in blood pressure during pregnancy, particularly in women who are prone to pregnancy-induced hypertension; however, the vascular effects of low dietary salt intake during pregnancy are unclear. We investigated whether a low-salt diet during pregnancy alters the mechanisms of vascular smooth muscle contraction. Active stress and...

The level of maternal circulating triglycerides during late pregnancy has been correlated to newborns' weight in humans. To investigate the response to fenofibrate, a hypotriglyceridemic agent, in pregnant rats, 0, 100, or 200 mg of fenofibrate/kg body weight as oral doses were given twice a day from day 16 of gestation and studied at day 20. Virgin rats were studied in parallel. Liver weight w...

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 preg...

Tobacco smoke is a source of free radicals and causes oxidative stress in smokers' tissues. The aim of the current study was to evaluate the effect of rutin on the total antioxidant status (TAS) in pregnant and non-pregnant rats that were exposed to cigarette smoke. TAS in brain, lungs, liver, kidneys and plasma were measured by the 2,2'-azinobis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonate) (ABTS) radic...

Gestation is associated with decreased blood pressure and resistance to the effects of vasoconstrictor agents. A recent study showed that pregnant rats, on increased sodium intake, present physiological changes that resemble those observed in preeclampsia. We investigated the effects of sodium supplementation on reactivity and on potassium and Ca(2+) channel activity in blood vessels during ges...

Hypertension during preeclampsia is associated with an increase in plasma levels of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha, a cytokine known to contribute to endothelial dysfunction. Recently, our laboratory reported that a 2-fold increase in plasma TNF-alpha produces hypertension in pregnant rats. Endothelin is also elevated in preeclampsia and endothelin synthesis is enhanced by TNF-alpha. The pur...

CONTEXT The exact mechanism involved in changes in blood pressure and peripheral vascular resistance during pregnancy is unknown. OBJECTIVE To evaluate the importance of endothelium-derived relaxing factor (EDRF) and its main component, nitric oxide, in blood pressure and vascular reactivity in pregnant rats. DESIGN Clinical trial in experimentation animals. SETTING University laboratory ...

Radiation from a cell phone causes significant changes in living organism. Pregnant women and children belong to the most sensitive groups of population are particularly vulnerable electromagnetic field radiation. We decided study concentration growth hormone 2 (GH-2) pregnant rats exposed (1800 MG/H), what effect as negative stimulus on offspring weight, number development would be. Irradiatio...

The initiating event in preeclampsia is thought be to reduced uteroplacental perfusion. Although we have reported previously that chronic reductions in uterine perfusion pressure (RUPP) in pregnant rats results in hypertension and enhanced endothelin production, the factors linking placental ischemia and endothelial cell activation remain unclear. The purpose of this study was to determine the ...

BACKGROUND There is an increased risk of heart failure and pulmonary edema in pregnancies complicated by hypertensive disorders. However, in a previous study we found that pregnancy protects against fibrosis and preserves angiogenesis in a rat model of angiotensin II induced cardiac hypertrophy. In this study we test the hypothesis that pregnancy protects against negative effects of increased a...