Evidence for endothelin involvement in the response to high salt

Abstract
Recent evidence suggests that endothelin-1 (ET-1), perhaps through the ETB receptor, may participate in blood pressure regulation through the control of sodium excretion. Mean arterial pressure (MAP) was continuously measured via telemetry implants in male Sprague-Dawley rats. After 1 wk of baseline measurements, rats were given either high (10%) or low (0.08%) NaCl in chow for the remainder of the experiment ( n = 5 in each group). MAP was significantly increased in rats on a high-salt diet (115 ± 2 mmHg) compared with rats on the low-salt diet (103 ± 2 mmHg; P < 0.05). All rats were then treated with the ETB receptor antagonist A-192621 mixed with the food and adjusted daily to ensure a dose of 30 mg · kg−1 · day−1. ETB blockade produced an increase in MAP within a few hours of treatment and was significantly higher in rats on the high-salt diet over a 1-wk period (170 ± 3 vs. 115 ± 3 mmHg, P < 0.01). To determine whether the increase in MAP during A-192621 treatment was due to increased ETA receptor activation, all rats were then given the ETA-selective antagonist ABT-627 in the drinking water while a low-salt/high-salt diet and ETB blockade were continued. ABT-627 decreased MAP within a few hours in rats on either the high-salt (113 ± 3 mmHg) or low-salt (101 ± 3 mmHg) diet. These results support the hypothesis that endothelin, through the ETB receptor, participates in blood pressure regulation in the response to salt loading.

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