This study was performed to investigate the beneficial effects of prolonged treatment with an
angiotensin converting enzyme (
ACE) inhibitor,
delapril, on the appearance of symptoms of hypertensive
cardiovascular disease in
stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP).
Cardiovascular disease symptoms:
stroke, kidney dysfunction and
cardiac hypertrophy, were evaluated by monitoring the incidence of
stroke signs, urinary excretion of
protein and the heart weight, respectively. The SHRSP that were kept under
salt-loaded conditions (1% NaCl drinking
solution) from six weeks of age developed severe
hypertension, showed an increased incidence of
stroke signs and increased urinary excretion of
protein. Long-term treatment with
delapril (10mg/kg/day, p.o. for four weeks) decreased the blood pressure and completely inhibited the incidence of
stroke signs and the increase in urinary excretion of
protein. In SHRSP that were kept under normal conditions (without 1% NaCl drinking
solution), long term treatment with
delapril at the same dose decreased the heart weight and, after five weeks of treatment, left ventricular weight was decreased significantly and the wall/lumen ratio of small coronary arterioles and the thickness of the left ventricular wall were decreased slightly. These results indicate that
delapril can prevent the development of symptoms of hypertensive
cardiovascular diseases:
stroke, kidney dysfunction and
cardiac hypertrophy, with
antihypertensive activity in SHRSP.