Sodium accumulation and blood capillary rarefaction in the skin predispose spontaneously hypertensive rats to salt sensitive hypertension.. Sodium accumulation and blood capillary rarefaction in the skin predispose spontaneously hypertensive rats to salt sensitive hypertension.

We compared tissue Na+ storage in salt sensitive spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) versus salt resistant normotensive Brown Norway (BN) rats after salt loading (10 days drinking 1% NaCl solution), the SHR showed significant parallel increase in osmotically inactive Na+ storage in the skin while no significant changes in skin electrolyte concentrations were observed in BN rats. SHR rats after salt treatment exhibited a nonsignificant decrease in skin blood capillary number (rarefaction) while BN rats showed significantly increased skin blood capillary density. Analysis of dermal gene expression profiles in BN rats after salt treatment showed significant up-regulation of genes involved in angiogenesis and proliferation of endothelial cells contrary to the SHR.