Background: If menopause is really independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease is still under debate. We studied if ovariectomy in the model of insulin resistance causes cardiovascular changes, to what extent are these changes reversible by estradiol substitution and if they are accompanied by changes in other organs and tissues.
Methods: Hereditary hypertriglyceridemic female rats were divided into three groups: ovariectomized at 8th week (n = 6), ovariectomized with 17-β estradiol substitution (n = 6), and the sham group (n = 5). The strain of abdominal aorta measured by ultrasound, expression of vascular genes, weight and content of myocardium and also non-cardiac parameters were analyzed.
Results: After ovariectomy, the strain of abdominal aorta, expression of nitric oxide synthase in abdominal aorta, relative weight of myocardium and of the left ventricle and circulating interleukin-6 decreased; these changes were reversed by estradiol substitution. Interestingly, the content of triglycerides in myocardium did not change after ovariectomy, but significantly increased after estradiol substitution while adiposity index did not change after ovariectomy, but significantly decreased after estradiol substitution.
Conclusion: Vascular and cardiac parameters under study differed in their response to ovariectomy and estradiol substitution. This indicates different effects of ovariectomy and estradiol on different cardiovascular but also extracardiac structures.
Keywords: cardiovascular changes; estradiol substitution; hereditary hypertriglyceridemic rat; insulin resistance; ovariectomy.