The Effects of Short-Term Nifedipine Treatment on Responsiveness of Aortic Rings of Cadmium-Hypertensive Rats

Abstract

The effects of short-term antihypertensive treatment with nifedipine on blood pressure and vascular responsiveness were studied in cadmium-hypertensive and normotensive control rats. Cadmium administration caused a significant increase in mean arterial blood pressure. Endothelin-1, noradrenaline and angiotensin II produced concentration dependent contractions of aortic rings that attained a lower maximal contraction in cadmium-hypertensive rats. Responses of aortic rings to KC1 did not show a significant difference between the groups. Nifedipine administered simultaneously with cadmium inhibited the induction of hypertension. Nifedipine treatment for 5 days significantly reduced the blood

Key Words:

• Cadmium
• hypertension
• nifedipine
• rat