Vasopressin gene expression in hypertensive, normotensive, and diabetes insipidus rats.

This investigation examined the presence and abundance of vasopressin-gene messenger ribonucleic acid (mRNA) transcripts in hypothalamic tissue from five strains of rats: Long Evans, Wistar-Kyoto, and diabetes insipidus (Brattleboro) rats, stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats, and cross-bred diabetes insipidus x stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats. A single-stranded RNA probe complementary to exon C of the vasopressin gene was utilized for in situ hybridization and identified hypothalamic 'vasopressinergic' neurons in tissue from all five strains of rats. The results obtained by solution and in situ hybridization suggested the cross-bred diabetic-hypertensive rat exhibits a level of vasopressin-gene messenger ribonucleic acid similar to diabetes insipidus rats. This observation is consistent with previous physiological data which suggests cross-bred diabetic-hypertensive rats inherit the mutated vasopressin gene of the Brattleboro rat.