Study of the effect of cross-fostering on intestinal changes that influence vascular remodeling and the development of Arterial Hypertension

Abstract

Since the XX century researchers classified Hypertension as a multifactorial disease, that could be affected by environmental factors. Studies developed during the 80s suggest that features from the postnatal environment have an effect on Hypertension development, showing that rats from hypertensive strains fostered to normotensive mothers - in an experimental approach termed cross-fostering - had a reduction in Systolic Blood Pressure (SBP) in adulthood. With Spontaneously Hypertensive Rats (SHR) researchers developed associations between the sodium consumption through maternal nursing and Renin Angiotensin System (RAS) activation. But although a better prognosis was shown by cross-fostered SHR, studies can't justify yet if this better prognosis is related to changes in RAS activation or not. As recent studies shown that adult SHR present 1) intestinal structure alterations and enhanced intestinal permeability - both associated with an unbalanced gut microbiota (dysbiosis); 2) that those intestinal changes are related to hypertensive adjustments and reversed by RAS inhibitors and/or antagonists treatments; and, 3) as our research group described a correlation of enhanced intestinal permeability and reduced Short Chain Fatty Acids (SCFAs) with vascular remodeling found on SHR Resistance Mesenteric Arteries (RMA), new possibilities for studies have emerged, allowing an association of the 80s results and the recent finds described. In this way, the hypothesis of the present project is that cross-fostering (by a different activation of intestinal RAS) could revert the stimulus responsible for those intestinal and microbial chances described in adult SHR - which were related to a severe vascular remodeling process, found on adult SHR RMAs, and to the higher blood pressure values presented. (AU)