Dietary salt intake has been linked to hypertension and cardiovascular disease. Accumulating evidence has indicated that salt-sensitive individuals on high salt intake are more likely to develop renal fibrosis. Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) participates in the development and progression of renal fibrosis in humans and animals. The objective of this study was to investigate the impact of a high-salt diet on EMT in Dahl salt-sensitive (SS) rats. Twenty-four male SS and consomic SS-13BN rats were randomized to a normal diet or a high-salt diet. After 4 weeks, systolic blood pressure (SBP) and albuminuria were analyzed, and renal fibrosis was histopathologically evaluated. Tubular EMT was evaluated using immunohistochemistry and real-time PCR with E-cadherin and alpha smooth muscle actin (α-SMA). After 4 weeks, SBP and albuminuria were significantly increased in the SS high-salt group compared with the normal diet group. Dietary salt intake induced renal fibrosis and tubular EMT as identified by reduced expression of E-cadherin and enhanced expression of α-SMA in SS rats. Both blood pressure and renal interstitial fibrosis were negatively correlated with E-cadherin but positively correlated with α-SMA. Salt intake induced tubular EMT and renal injury in SS rats, and this relationship might depend on the increase in blood pressure.
Accumulating evidence has suggested that high salt and potassium might be associated
with vascular function. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of salt
intake and potassium supplementation on brachial-ankle pulse wave velocity (PWV) in
Chinese subjects. Forty-nine subjects (28-65 years of age) were selected from a rural
community of northern China. All subjects were sequentially maintained on a low-salt
diet for 7 days (3.0 g/day NaCl), a high-salt diet for an additional 7 days (18.0
g/day NaCl), and a high-salt diet with potassium supplementation for a final 7 days
(18.0 g/day NaCl+4.5 g/day KCl). Brachial-ankle PWV was measured at baseline and on
the last day of each intervention. Blood pressure levels were significantly increased
from the low-salt to high-salt diet, and decreased from the high-salt diet to
high-salt plus potassium supplementation. Baseline brachial-ankle PWV in
salt-sensitive subjects was significantly higher than in salt-resistant subjects.
There was no significant change in brachial-ankle PWV among the 3 intervention
periods in salt-sensitive, salt-resistant, or total subjects. No significant
correlations were found between brachial-ankle PWV and 24-h sodium and potassium
excretions. Our study indicates that dietary salt intake and potassium
supplementation, at least in the short term, had no significant effect on
brachial-ankle PWV in Chinese subjects.
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