Effect of cholesterol-rich diet on the content of nicotinamide nucleotides, adenine nucleotides and acetyl-CoA in the liver, the vascular wall and the kidney of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR).

The liver content of NAD and of adenylic nucleotides of normally fed spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) is lower than in normotensive rats. The cholesterol-rich diet does not change the liver NAD level. However it decreases adenine nucleotides and increases the level of acetyl-CoA and of NADP. Normal refeeding after a long-term cholesterol-rich diet induces an increase in the low levels of the coenzymes (moth NAD and adenine nucleotides). The liver coenzyme changes caused by the cholesterol-rich diet and by the normal refeeding of SHR are opposite to those established in normotensive rats. Vascular wall nicotinamide coenzymes in SHR are lower than in ulistar rats. The vascular wall of SHR reacts to the cholesterol-rich diet by a rise in NAD, i.e. conversely to the reaction observed in the liver of SHR and vascular wall of normotensive rats. Normal refeeding induces a further increase in the content of coenzymes. These results show that the effect of cholesterol-rich diet on the coenzyme content in the SHR is opposite to that in normotensive rats. The renal redox-system NAD+-NAD-H is more sensitive to the cholesterol-rich diet than the liver one, and its coenzyme changes indicate a greater reduction state, a reaction pattern which is typical for renal hypoxia. The results suggest that the cholesterol-rich diet influences the metabolism of the liver, the kidney and the vascular wall in a different way and to a different degree. SHR have a specific type of reaction to this cholesterol-rich diet.