Kieffer P, Robert A, Capdeville-Atkinson C, Atkinson J, Lartaud-Idjouadiene I
Laboratoire de Pharmacologie Cardio-vasculaire, Faculté de Pharmacie, UHP-Nancy 1, France.
Life Sci. 2000 May 5;66(24):2371-81. doi: 10.1016/s0024-3205(00)00567-1.
In man, i) arteries calcify with age and ii) age-linked arterial calcification is amplified by vascular pathology such as hypertension or arteriosclerosis. Age-linked arterial calcification has a bad prognosis but drugs to prevent it are lacking. This is partially due to the lack of appropriate animal models. This paper looks at the extent to which arteries calcify with age in the rat and whether hypertension or arteriosclerosis amplifies such calcification. Total calcium levels were determined by acid digestion and flame spectrophotometry and intracellular calcium levels ([Ca2+]i) by the intracellular calcium-sensitive dye, fura-2. Arteries contained up to 5 times more calcium than other soft tissues. Arteries progressively calcified with age whereas other soft tissues did not. Accumulation of calcium with age was essentially extracellular. Hypertension had no effect on age-related arterial calcification. Calcification of the same order as in man was produced in a rat model of arteriosclerosis (vitamin D plus nicotine treatment). In conclusion, as in man, age-linked, organ-specific arterial calcification does occur in rats but its intensity is far less. Arterial calcification of a similar degree to that observed in man can be obtained in rats by hypervitaminosis D plus nicotine.
在人类中，i）动脉会随着年龄增长而钙化，且ii）与年龄相关的动脉钙化会因高血压或动脉硬化等血管病变而加剧。与年龄相关的动脉钙化预后不良，但缺乏预防药物。部分原因是缺乏合适的动物模型。本文研究了大鼠动脉随年龄增长而钙化的程度，以及高血压或动脉硬化是否会加剧这种钙化。通过酸消化和火焰分光光度法测定总钙水平，并用细胞内钙敏染料fura-2测定细胞内钙水平（[Ca2+]i）。动脉中的钙含量比其他软组织多高达5倍。动脉随年龄增长逐渐钙化，而其他软组织则不会。随着年龄增长，钙的积累主要在细胞外。高血压对与年龄相关的动脉钙化没有影响。在动脉硬化大鼠模型（维生素D加尼古丁处理）中产生了与人相同程度的钙化。总之，与人类一样，大鼠确实会发生与年龄相关的、器官特异性的动脉钙化，但其强度要小得多。通过维生素D过量和尼古丁处理，可在大鼠中获得与人观察到的相似程度的动脉钙化。
