Effect of tissue kallikrein gene treatment on blood pressure in type 2 diabetic rats and its mechanism / 中国病理生理杂志

ABSTRACT

AIM: To study the effect of tissue kallikrein gene (HK) treatment on blood pressure in type 2 diabetic rats and its mechanism. METHODS: Male Wistar rats were injected with low dose streptozotocin and fed with diets enriched in fat and sugar to form type 2 diabetic model. Recombinant adeno-associated viral vectors (rAAV)-mediated HK gene (HK group) or LacZ gene (LacZ group) was introduced to the diabetic rats. The systolic blood pressure was measured every 2 weeks. The acetylcholine (Ach)-dependent vasodilation response, the synthesis of nitric oxide (NO), the expression of endothelin-1 (ET-1) and endothelin-A receptor (ET_A-R) in the aorta were detected. RESULTS: (1) Systolic blood pressure was significantly higher in diabetic rats than that in normal control rats. In HK group, systolic blood pressure was significantly reduced within 2 weeks after injection with rAAV?HK, reached near normal levels at 4 weeks and kept until the experiments ended (16 weeks). (2) In LacZ group, Ach-dependent vasodilation response of isolated aorta was markedly decreased than that in HK group (P