Vascular oxidative stress precedes high blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats

This study examines whether longitudinal antioxidant treatment initiated in prehypertensive spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) can attenuate vascular oxidant stress and prevent blood pressure elevation during development. Male SHR and age-matched Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY) were treated from 6 to 11 weeks of age with Tempol (4-hydroxy-2,2,6,6-tetramethylpiperidinoxyl) (1 mmol/l in drinking water), a membrane-permeable superoxide dismutase mimetic. Mean systolic blood pressures (SBPs) were measured by tail-cuff Agonist-induced and basal O2- production was measured in thoracic aortas of 6- and 11-week-old SHR and WKY by lucigenin-derived chemiluminescence and oxidative fluorescent microscopy, respectively. SBP of 6-week-old SHR (131 +/- 5 mmHg) and WKY (130 +/- 4 mmHg) were not different; however, 11-week-old SHR SBP (171 +/- 4 mmHg) was significantly greater (p = .0001) than 11-week-old WKY SBP (143 +/- 5 mmHg). Tempol treatment completely, but reversibly, prevented this age-related rise in SHR SBP (SHR + Tempol: 137 +/- 4 mmHg; p < .0001 versus untreated SHR). Agonist-induced vascular O2- was increased in 6- (p = .03) and 11-week-old SHR (p < .0001) and 11-week-old WKY (p = .03) but not in 6-week-old WKY. Long-term Tempol treatment significantly lowered O2- production in both strains. Basal O2- measurements in both 6- and 11-week-old SHR were qualitatively increased compared with age-matched WKY; this increase in SHR was inhibited with in vitro Tempol treatment. These data show that antioxidant treatment to reduce oxidative stress prevents the age-related development of high blood pressure in an animal model of genetic hypertension.