Repeated increases in blood flow, independent of exercise, enhance conduit artery vasodilator function in humans
Publication year
2011Source
American Journal of Physiology : Heart and Circulatory Physiology, 300, 2, (2011), pp. H664-9ISSN
Publication type
Article / Letter to editor

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Organization
Physiology
Journal title
American Journal of Physiology : Heart and Circulatory Physiology
Volume
vol. 300
Issue
iss. 2
Page start
p. H664
Page end
p. 9
Subject
NCEBP 14: Cardiovascular diseases IGMD 5: Health aging / healthy livingAbstract
This study aimed to determine the importance of repeated increases in blood flow to conduit artery adaptation, using an exercise-independent repeated episodic stimulus. Recent studies suggest that exercise training improves vasodilator function of conduit arteries via shear stress-mediated mechanisms. However, exercise is a complex stimulus that may induce shear-independent adaptations. Nine healthy men immersed their forearms in water at 42 degrees C for three 30-min sessions/wk across 8 wk. During each session, a pneumatic pressure cuff was inflated around one forearm to unilaterally modulate heating-induced increases in shear. Forearm heating was associated with an increase in brachial artery blood flow (P<0.001) and shear rate (P<0.001) in the uncuffed forearm; this response was attenuated in the cuffed limb (P<0.005). Repeated episodic exposure to bilateral heating induced an increase in endothelium-dependent vasodilation in response to 5-min ischemic (P<0.05) and ischemic handgrip exercise (P<0.005) stimuli in the uncuffed forearm, whereas the 8-wk heating intervention did not influence dilation to either stimulus in the cuffed limb. Endothelium-independent glyceryl trinitrate responses were not altered in either limb. Repeated heating increases blood flow to levels that enhance endothelium-mediated vasodilator function in humans. These findings reinforce the importance of the direct impacts of shear stress on the vascular endothelium in humans.
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- Academic publications [202828]
- Faculty of Medical Sciences [80037]
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