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Urantide improves the structure and function of right ventricle as determined by echocardiography in monocrotaline-induced pulmonary hypertension rat model

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Abstract

Urotensin II (UII) has been reported to play a key role in pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) development. Doppler echocardiography, a noninvasive and simple tool, is recommended for diagnosing PAH. This study was designed to investigate the effect of urantide, a UII receptor antagonist, on the structure and function of the right ventricle in PAH rat models by Doppler echocardiography. A total of 60 male rats were divided into two groups: early- and late-treatment groups. Rats in the urantide and MCT (monocrotaline) subgroups were injected with 10 μg/kg urantide in the urantide group or an equal amount of normal saline in the MCT group 1 week after PAH model construction in the early-treatment group and 4 weeks after the construction in the late-treatment group. Rats in the control group received an equal volume of normal saline solution. PAH-related indexes were measured by echocardiography. PAH rat models exhibited higher right ventricular diastolic diameter and lower time to peak, ejection time, and peak flow velocity of pulmonary artery than controls (P < 0.05). However, compared with the MCT group, all abovementioned indexes were improved in the urantide group (P < 0.05). No significant differences in pulmonary artery diameter and left ventricular ejection fraction were noted among the groups. Compared with the MCT group, systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (SPAP) and mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) were significantly lower in the urantide group (P < 0.05). SPAP examined by echocardiography was correlated with mPAP by catheterization (P < 0.05). Urantide treatment improved right heart failure parameters in MCT-induced PAH rats, thus providing a potential new strategy for treating PAH.

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Funding

This work was supported by the Science and Technology Research Project of the Education Department of Heilongjiang Province (Program No. 12531239).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, No. 23 Youzheng Street, Nangang District, Harbin, Heilongjiang, 150001, China

    Yan Wang, Shuya Wang & Yifang Mei

  2. Department of Rheumatology and Immunology, The First Hospital of Qiqihar, Longsha District, Qiqihar, Heilongjiang, 161005, China

    Wei Tian

  3. Department of Echocardiography, The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Nangang District, Harbin, Heilongjiang, 150001, China

    Chunhong Xiu

  4. Department of Cardiology, The First Hospital of Harbin, Daoli District, Harbin, Heilongjiang, 150010, China

    Ming Yan

Authors
  1. Yan Wang
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  3. Chunhong Xiu
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  4. Ming Yan
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  5. Shuya Wang
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  6. Yifang Mei
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yifang Mei.

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All experiments were approved by the Ethics Committee of Experimental Research in the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University and conformed to the Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.

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Highlights

A monocrotaline-induced PAH rat model was established.

Urantide benefited the structure and function of the right ventricle in PAH rats.

Urantide improved the hemodynamic parameters of PAH rats.

SPAP examined by echocardiography was significantly correlated with mPAP value.

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Wang, Y., Tian, W., Xiu, C. et al. Urantide improves the structure and function of right ventricle as determined by echocardiography in monocrotaline-induced pulmonary hypertension rat model. Clin Rheumatol 38, 29–35 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-018-3978-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10067-018-3978-5

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