Analysis of the vascular gene expression profile following a chronic nitrate supplementation in old mice

Analyses of the vascular changes that occur following a chronic nitrate supplementation in old mice at a gene expression level and transcriptional profile have not been elucidated in depth. To determine the changes of the vascular transcriptome, we conducted gene expression microarray experiments on aortas of old and old nitrate treated mice, in which age-related vascular dysfunction was confirmed by endothelial dysfunction. C57BL/6 mice (n=6) obtained from Janvier (Saint Berthevin, France) were 20 months old. Standard rodent chow were fed ad libitum. Mice were treated with 1g/L NaNO3 dissolved in the drinking water for 8 weeks. For aortic RNA Analysis, the vessel was flushed thoroughly with ice-cold phosphate-buffered saline (PBS), through the left ventricle of the heart, cleaned of periadventitial fat and connective tissues, and snap-frozen in liquid nitrogen and stored at -80 °C.