Role of adrenergic innervation in experimental renal hypertension

Renal hypertension was induced by ligation of the aorta between renal arteries in rats sympathectomized with 6-hydroxydopamine. In the early phase, equally severe hypertension developed in the denervated group as compared to innervated controls. Later, blood pressure was lower in the denervated rats. Initially, increases in plasma renin were seen in both groups; the levels, however, were markedly lower in the denervated rats. Later, the renin levels were similar and not different from baseline. It is concluded that adrenergic neural activity is not essential in the development of renal hypertension; the maintenance of the chronic state, however, depends in part on adrenergic innervation.     

Regulation of respiration and pulmonary blood circulation in experimental pneumonia

The experiments on anesthetized cats were carried out to determine the functional state of respiration centre (impulse activity of genuine respiration neurons and electrical activity of major and additional respiration muscles). Functional peculiarities of macro- and microcirculation of the lung tissue were also studied in the open and closed chest in normal subjects and in conditions of experimental pneumonia.     

Effect of chronic administration of propranolol on the blood pressure and heart weight in experimental renal hypertension.

Chronic administration of propranolol did not alter the course of severe renal hypertension in the rat. Twenty and forty days after the induction of hypertension, blood pressure, ventricular weight and plasma renin concentration were determined. On day forty, at equivalent levels of blood pressure, the ventricular and the ventricular/body weight ratio was significantly lower in the propranolol treated group (18.6%; 22.9%). It is suggested that propranolol may mitigate the cardiac hypertrophy associated with hypertension. This effect is independent of the blood pressure.