ERK expression and activation in myocardial hypertrophy of spontaneously hypertensive rats with different ages / 浙江大学学报·医学版

ABSTRACT

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the expression and activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinases (ERK) in myocardial hypertrophy of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) with different ages.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>SHRs and Wistar Kyoto (WKY) rats were divided into 4 groups (5-, 8-,14-, 24-week old) respectively. The ratio of left ventricle weight to body weight (LVW/BW) was measured as the indicator of myocardial hypertrophy. The basal ERK expression (b-ERK) and phosphorylated-ERK (p-ERK) in myocardial tissue were examined by Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULT</b>The blood pressure of SHR was significantly higher than that of age-matched WKY rats from 8-week-old (P<0.001). The ratio of LVW/BW in SHR was increased significantly from 14-week-old (P<0.01). There was no significant difference of b-ERK expression between SHR and age-matched WKY rats. The p-ERK level of 5-week-old SHR was similar to that of 5-week-old WKY rats. The p-ERK level of SHR was significantly higher than that of age-matched WKY rats from 8-week-old to 24-week-old (P<0.01). The ratio of LVW/BW was positively related to p-ERK level but not related to b-ERK.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>The activation of ERK may play an important role in the development of myocardial hypertrophy caused by hypertension.</p>