Exaggerated pulmonary hypertension with monocrotaline in rats susceptible to chronic mountain sickness

Hilltop (H) strain Sprague-Dawley rats are more susceptible to chronic mountain sickness than are the Madison (M) strain rats. It is unclear what role pulmonary vascular remodeling, polycythemia, and hypoxia-induced vasoconstriction play in mediating the more severe pulmonary hypertension that develops in the H rats during chronic hypoxia. It is also unclear whether the increased sensitivity of the H rats to chronic mountain sickness is specific for a hypoxia effect or, instead, reflects a general propensity toward the development of pulmonary hypertension. Monocrotaline (MCT) causes pulmonary vascular remodeling and pulmonary hypertension. We hypothesized that the difference in the pulmonary vascular response to chronic hypoxia between H and M rats reflects an increased sensitivity of the H rats to any pulmonary hypertensive stimuli. Consequently, we expected the two strains to also differ in their susceptibility to MCT-induced pulmonary hypertension. Pulmonary arterial pressures in conscious H and M rats were measured 3 wk after a single dose of MCT, exposure to a simulated high altitude of 18,000 ft (barometric pressure = 380 mmHg), and administration of a single dose of saline as a placebo. The H rats had significantly higher pulmonary arterial pressures and right ventricular weights after MCT and chronic hypoxia than did the M rats. The H rats also had more pulmonary vascular remodeling, i.e., greater wall thickness as a percentage of vessel diameter, after MCT and chronic hypoxia than did the M rats. The H rats had significantly lower arterial PO2 than did the M rats after MCT, but the degree of hypoxemia was mild [arterial PO2 of 72.5 +/- 0.8 (SE) Torr for H rats vs. 77.4 +/- 0.8 Torr for M rats after MCT]. The H rats had lower arterial PCO2 and larger minute ventilation values than did the M rats after MCT. These ventilatory differences suggest that MCT caused more severe pulmonary vascular damage in the H rats than in the M rats. These data support the hypothesis that the H rats have a general propensity to develop pulmonary hypertension and suggest that differences in pulmonary vascular remodeling account for the increased susceptibility of H rats, compared with M rats, to both MCT and chronic hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension.