The effect of meal size and frequency on plasma volume, plasma aldosterone concentration and urinary Na and K clearances was determined in ponies. A daily maintenance ration of hay-grain pellets was provided either as a multiple feeding regimen, ie, 12 equal portions fed at 2-hour intervals, or as single large feedings, ie, half the ration fed every 12 hours at 0800 and 2000 hours. Only the effect of the single morning feeding was studied, using the latter regimen. Serial measurements of plasma volume were made by use of an indicator-dilution technique and indocyanine green (0.15 mg/kg of body weight, IV) that allowed repeated determinations at 2-hour intervals. Ingestion of the single large meal caused a 15% decrease in plasma volume by the end of a 1-hour feeding period. Feeding hypovolemia was confirmed by a coincident increase in plasma protein concentration (12%) and, in separate experiments, by analysis of postfeeding changes in the elimination of Evans blue dye. Plasma aldosterone concentration was significantly (P < 0.05) increased from 2 to 5 hours after feeding. Urinary Na clearance decreased in response to feeding and remained lower than the prefeeding value until 9 hours after feeding. Urinary K clearance increased from prefeeding and reached a peak value between 5 and 7 hours after feeding. Creatinine clearance was unaffected. In contrast, the aforementioned variables were unchanged during the multiple regimen. Results indicate that ingestion of a large concentrate meal by ponies causes periprandial hypovolemia, activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, and a subsequent antinaturesis-kaluresis that lasts for several hours.

Renal electrolyte and net acid excretion were characterized during generation and maintenance of hypochloremic metabolic alkalosis in a ruminant model. Two phases of renal response with regard to sodium and net acid excretion were documented. An initial decrease in net acid excretion was attributable to increase in bicarbonate excretion with associated increase in sodium excretion. As the metabolic disturbance became more advanced, a second phase of renal excretion was observed in which sodium and bicarbonate excretion were markedly decreased, leading to increase in net acid excretion and development of aciduria. Throughout the metabolic disturbance, chloride excretion was markedly decreased; potassium excretion also decreased. These changes were accompanied by increase in plasma renin and aldosterone concentrations. There was apparent failure to concentrate the urine optimally during the course of the metabolic disturbance, despite increasing plasma concentration of antidiuretic hormone.

OBJECTIVE To determine whether a dose-response relationship exists between short-term oral prednisone administration and common clinicopathologic variables, cardiovascular biomarkers, and systolic arterial blood pressure (SAP) in healthy dogs. ANIMALS 8 healthy Beagles. PROCEDURES Dogs underwent five 5-day experiments (no prednisone treatment [control condition] and prednisone administration at 0.5, 1, 2, and 4 mg/kg, PO, q 24 h), with a 9-day washout period between protocols. Analyses performed before and after treatments included a CBC, serum biochemical analysis, and determination of SAP, fractional excretion of electrolytes, urine protein-to-creatinine ratio, glomerular filtration rate (GFR), serum N-terminal pro B–type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and plasma cortisol concentrations, and plasma renin activity. Linear mixed-effects modeling was used to compare changes in variables from baseline (day 1 for the same experiment) among treatment conditions. RESULTS Changes in serum glucose concentration and GFR were significantly greater after administration of prednisone at 4 mg/kg than for the control condition. Fractional excretion of sodium was decreased from baseline when dogs received 0.5, 1, or 4 mg of prednisone/kg, compared with results for the control condition. Several expected changes in clinicopathologic values were observed after prednisone administration at any dose. Changes in serum NT-proBNP concentration, plasma renin activity, and SAP did not differ from changes for the control condition at any prednisone dose. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Oral prednisone administration did not affect SAP, NT-proBNP concentration, or measures of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system activation in healthy laboratory-housed dogs but was associated with relative increases in GFR and serum glucose concentration.

Objective-To describe neuroendocrine responses that develop in dogs subjected to prolonged periods of ventricular pacing. Animals-14 adult male hound-type dogs. Procedure-Samples were obtained and neuroendocrine responses measured before (baseline) and after 3 periods of ventricular pacing. A pacemaker was used to induce heart rates of 180, 200, and 220 beats/min (BPM). Each heart rate was maintained for 3 weeks before increasing to the next rate. Atrial natriuretic peptide, antidiuretic hormone, aldosterone, norepinephrine, epinephrine, and dopamine concentrations and plasma renin activity were measured. Severity of left ventricular compromise was estimated. Results-Shortening fraction decreased significantly with increasing heart rates (mean +/- SE, 35.5 +/- 1.4, 25.0 +/- 1.4, 19.5 +/- 1.9, and 12.2 +/- 2.3 for baseline, 180 BPM, 200 BPM, and 220 BPM, respectively). Atrial natriuretic peptide concentrations increased significantly at 180 BPM (44.1 +/- 3.0 pg/mL) and 200 BPM (54.8 +/- 5.5 pg/mL), compared with baseline concentration (36.8 +/- 2.6 pg/mL). Dopamine concentration increased significantly at 200 BPM (70.4 +/- 10.4 pg/mL), compared with baseline concentration (44.2 +/- 7.3 pg/mL). Norepinephrine concentrations increased significantly from baseline concentration (451 +/- 46.2 pg/mL) to 678 +/- 69.8, 856 +/- 99.6, and 1,003 +/- 267.6 pg/mL at 180, 200, and 220 BPM, respectively. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Dogs subjected to ventricular pacing for 9 weeks developed neuroendocrine responses similar to those that develop in humans with more chronic heart failure and, except for epinephrine concentrations, similar to those for dogs subjected to ventricular pacing for < 6 weeks.

Effects of furosemide administration on exertion-induced changes in plasma renin activity and plasma concentrations of atrial natriuretic peptide and aldosterone in horses during sustained submaximal exertion were examined. Furosemide (1 mg/kg of body weight) or heparinized saline solution was administered IV to each of 6 mares not conditioned to exercise, either 4 hours or 2 minutes before 60 minutes of sustained submaximal running on a treadmill. Horses ran at a speed that induced heart rate approximately 65% of maximal after saline treatment. After 15 minutes of running, furosemide suppressed the exertion-induced increase in plasma concentrations of atrial natriuretic peptide (mean [95% confidence interval] values of 63.9 [9.9 to 421] pg/ml vs 100 [15.4 to 652] pg/ml after furosemide or saline treatment, respectively), and enhanced the response of plasma renin activity to exertion (18.6 [5.7 to 60.4] ng/ml/h vs 6.0 [1.8 to 19.4] ng/ml/h, respectively). An effect of furosemide on the exertion-induced increase in plasma aldosterone concentration was not detected.

Six untrained mares were subjected to incremental treadmill exercise to examine exercise-induced in plasma renin activity (PRA) and plasma aldosterone (ALDO) and plasma arginine vasopressin (AVP) concentrations. Plasma renin activity, ALDO and AVP concentrations, and heart rate (HR) were measured at each step of an incremental maximal exercise test. Mares ran up a 6 degrees slope on a treadmill set at an initial speed of 4 m/s. Speed was increased 1 m/s each minute until HR reached a plateau. Plasma obtained was stored at - 80 C and later was thawed, extracted, and assayed for PRA and ALDO and AVP values by use of radioimmunoassay. Exercise caused significant increase in HR from 40 +/- 2 beats/min (mean +/- SEM) at rest to 206 +/- 4 beats/min (HRmax) at speed of 9 m/s. Plasma renin activity increased from 1.9 + /- 1.0 ng/ml/h at rest to a peak of 5.2 +/- 1.0 ng/ml/h at 9 m/s, paralleling changes in HR. Up to treadmill speed of 9 m/s, strong linear correlations were obtained between exercise intensity (and duration) and HR (r = 0.87, P < 0.05) and PRA (r = 0.93, P < 0.05). Heart rate and PRA reached a plateau and did not increase when speed was increased from 9 to 10 m/s. Plasma ALDO concentration increased from 48 +/- 16 pg/ml at rest to 191 +/- 72 pg/ml at speed of 10 m/s. Linear relation was found between exercise intensity (and duration) and ALDO concentration (r = 0.97, P < 0.05). Plasma AVP concentration increased from 4.0 +/- 3.0 pg/ml at rest to 95 +/- 5.0 pg/ml at speed of 10 m/s. The relation between AVP concentration and exercise intensity (and duration) appeared to be curvilinear, and was described by an exponential function (r = 0.92, P < 0.05). These data indicate that PRA and ALDO and AVP concentrations increase in horses during progressive treadmill exercise.

The aim of this study was to clarify the role of the renal renin-angiotensin system (RAS) in diabetic nephropathy (DN) , which was induced by injection of streptozotocin (STZ). Male CBA/N and CBA/J mice were compared in this study. The former possesses a single renin gene, Ren1. whereas the latter carries two renin genes, Ren1 and Ren2. To examine the molecular dynamics of renal RAS, including renin, angiotensinogen (Agt), angiotensin-converting enzyme (Ace), angiotensin type 1 (Agtr1) and type 2 (Agtr2) receptors in experimental DN, we performed laser-microdissection (LMD) followed by reverse transcriptase nested polymerase chain reaction using each specific primer pairs and immunohistochemistry for renin and angiotensin 2. CBA/N mice had a higher response after injection of STZ than CBA/J mice, showing a significant increase of the kidney/body weight ratio, although there was no significant difference between the two strains for the blood glucose level or pancreatic beta-cell response. The onset of renal pathological changes associated with DN was earlier and more severe in CBA/N mice than in CBA/J mice. Distinct immunoreactivities for renin and angiotensin 2 were newly distributed on the flattered epithelial cells in the dilated distal tubules in the cortex as well as the collecting ducts in the cortex and medulla, and were demonstrated more intensity in CBA/N mice than in CBA/J mice. Micro dissectional analysis in both models revealed a higher incidence of RAS-related gene expression in CBA/J, Ren 2 mice than in CBA-N, Ren 1 mice.