Cerebral vascular autoregulation of blood flow and tissue PO2 in diabetic rats

The effect of chronic, severe diabetes mellitus on the morphology, blood flow regulation, and tissue PO2 of the cerebral cortex was evaluated in adult rats. The arterioles of the diabetic animals were enlarged in terms of both lumen diameter and vessel wall area. Although resting blood flow in the diabetic rats was greater than in the normal rats, the autoregulation of cerebral blood flow was very good within an arterial pressure range of 40-150 mmHg, just as in normal rats. The resting tissue PO2 in diabetic rats was 14.9 +/- 0.5 (SEM) compared with 12.7 +/- 0.6 mmHg in normal animals and in both groups remained at or near the resting PO2 at arterial pressures from 40 to 150 mmHg. There was no apparent loss of arterioles on the cortex surface or change in length of individual arterioles in diabetic animals but there was a 20-30% decrease in the number of venules and no change in the length of individual venules. These data indicate that although the arteriolar morphology and number of venules change in the brain during diabetes, physiological function in terms of tissue PO2 and blood flow regulation is maintained within normal limits.

Download Full-text

Altered blood flow regulation in autotransplanted pancreatic islets of rats

AJP Endocrinology and Metabolism ◽

10.1152/ajpendo.1990.259.1.e52 ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 259 (1) ◽

pp. E52-E56 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

L. Jansson ◽

S. Sandler

Keyword(s):

Blood Flow ◽

Pancreatic Islets ◽

Blood Perfusion ◽

Flow Regulation ◽

Adult Rats ◽

Partial Pancreatectomy ◽

Pancreatic Remnant ◽

Islet Blood Flow ◽

Blood Flow Regulation ◽

Other Substances

Adult rats were partially depancreatized, and approximately 500 islets were isolated from each excised pancreas, maintained in tissue culture for 7 days, and subsequently transplanted back to the same animals beneath the renal capsule. Four weeks after transplantation the animals were anesthetized and given an intravenous injection of 1 ml of either saline, 30% (wt/vol) D-glucose, 30% (wt/vol) D-galactose, DL-propranolol (15 mg/kg body wt) dissolved in saline, or terbutaline (1 mg/kg body wt) dissolved in saline. Five minutes later blood perfusion of the islet grafts and the pancreatic remnant were measured with a microsphere technique. Islet blood flow was also measured in animals with pancreas intact and no islet grafts after administration of saline, glucose, or galactose. These animals demonstrated a significant and preferential increase in islet blood flow after glucose administration, whereas galactose caused a selective decrease in islet blood perfusion. Both whole pancreatic blood flow and islet blood flow in the pancreatic remnant were decreased by terbutaline administration, whereas the other substances had no effect. Blood flow to the transplanted islets was decreased by glucose and galactose, whereas propranolol and terbutaline had no effect compared with the saline-injected animals. These results suggest that blood flow regulation differs between transplanted pancreatic islets, islets in the normal pancreas, and islets in the pancreatic remnant after partial pancreatectomy. Whether this reflects lack of innervation or an altered reactivity of the newly formed blood vessels in islet grafts is presently unknown.

Download Full-text

Cellular transport ofl-arginine determines renal medullary blood flow in control rats, but not in diabetic rats despite enhanced cellular uptake capacity

AJP Renal Physiology ◽

10.1152/ajprenal.00335.2016 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 312 (2) ◽

pp. F278-F283 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Patrik Persson ◽

Angelica Fasching ◽

Tom Teerlink ◽

Peter Hansell ◽

Fredrik Palm

Keyword(s):

Nitric Oxide ◽

Blood Flow ◽

Renal Blood Flow ◽

Cellular Uptake ◽

Flow Regulation ◽

Diabetic Rats ◽

Uptake Capacity ◽

Medullary Blood Flow ◽

Arginine Uptake ◽

Blood Flow Regulation

Diabetes mellitus is associated with decreased nitric oxide bioavailability thereby affecting renal blood flow regulation. Previous reports have demonstrated that cellular uptake of l-arginine is rate limiting for nitric oxide production and that plasma l-arginine concentration is decreased in diabetes. We therefore investigated whether regional renal blood flow regulation is affected by cellular l-arginine uptake in streptozotocin-induced diabetic rats. Rats were anesthetized with thiobutabarbital, and the left kidney was exposed. Total, cortical, and medullary renal blood flow was investigated before and after renal artery infusion of increasing doses of either l-homoarginine to inhibit cellular uptake of l-arginine or Nω-nitro- l-arginine methyl ester (l-NAME) to inhibit nitric oxide synthase. l-Homoarginine infusion did not affect total or cortical blood flow in any of the groups, but caused a dose-dependent reduction in medullary blood flow. l-NAME decreased total, cortical and medullary blood flow in both groups. However, the reductions in medullary blood flow in response to both l-homoarginine and l-NAME were more pronounced in the control groups compared with the diabetic groups. Isolated cortical tubular cells displayed similar l-arginine uptake capacity whereas medullary tubular cells isolated from diabetic rats had increased l-arginine uptake capacity. Diabetics had reduced l-arginine concentrations in plasma and medullary tissue but increased l-arginine concentration in cortical tissue. In conclusion, the reduced l-arginine availability in plasma and medullary tissue in diabetes results in reduced nitric oxide-mediated regulation of renal medullary hemodynamics. Cortical blood flow regulation displays less dependency on extracellular l-arginine and the upregulated cortical tissue l-arginine may protect cortical hemodynamics in diabetes.

Download Full-text