Renin and angiotensin II receptor expression in the brains of DES-treated Syrian hamsters

✍ Scribed by Dodge, Alice H. ;Reid, Ian A. ;Inagami, Tadashi

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1997
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 214 KB
• Volume: 248
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0003-276X
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1097-0185(199707)248:3<442::aid-ar17>3.0.co;2-p

✦ Synopsis

Background: The renin angiotensin system (RAS) promotes vasoconstriction. Expression of RAS is induced by different factors. Methods: In this study, forebrain sections of hamster brains were studied by immunohistochemical methods to determine the location of renin-positive and angiotensin II receptor-positive cells. The brain sections were obtained from diethylstilbesterol-(DES-) treated hamsters, adult non-DES-treated hamsters, elderly non-DES-treated hamsters, neonatal hamsters, and 15-day fetal hamsters. Circulating renin activity was determined for all but the neonatal and 15-day fetal hamsters. Results: Renin-positive and angiotensin II receptor-positive vascular smooth muscle cells were observed in DES-treated hamsters. No positive cells were observed in neonatal, 15-day fetal, and adult non-DES-treated hamsters. Some expression was observed in elderly hamsters. Conclusions: Therefore, focal expression of the renin angiotensin system in brain vasculature was induced by the synthetic estrogen DES. Anat.