Basal high blood pressure cosegregates with the loci on chromosome 1 in the F2 generation from crosses between normotensive Wistar Kyoto rats and stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats.

We investigated the linkage between high blood pressure (BP) and microsatellite genotypes in the independently produced F2 progenies between Wistar Kyoto rats (WKY) and stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP) at the age of 2.5, 3 and 5 months before salt loading and after 2 month salt loading. In 2.5, 3 and 5 month-old male and female F2 progenies, blood pressure was significantly higher in homozygotes of the SHRSP allele at the two loci on rat chromosome 1, leukosianine (LSN) and myosin light chain (MYL2), than those of heterozygotes or WKY homozygotes. However, this strong cosegregation was attenuated after salt loading for 2 months. Basal (non salt-loaded) blood pressure strongly cosegregates with the loci on rat chromosome 1 and, therefore, putative gene(s) in this region contribute to the development of basal high blood pressure in SHRSP.