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(Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis, and Vascular Biology. 2004;24:671.)
© 2004 American Heart Association, Inc.

Vascular Biology

Absence of Dystrophin in Mice Reduces NO-Dependent Vascular Function and Vascular Density: Total Recovery After a Treatment with the Aminoglycoside Gentamicin

Laurent Loufrani; Caroline Dubroca; Dong You; Z. Li; Bernard Levy; Denise Paulin; Daniel Henrion

From the Institut National de la Santé et de la Recherche Médicale (INSERM) Unité 541 (L.L., C.D., D.Y., D.H.), Paris, France; the Department of Physiology, AP-HP-Hôpital Lariboisière (B.L.), Paris, France; and the Laboratoire de Biologie Moléculaire de la Différentiation (Z.L., D.P.), Paris VII University, Paris, France.

Correspondence to Dr. Laurent Loufrani, PhD, Laboratoire de Physiologie, Faculté de Médecine, Rue Haute de Reculée, 49045 Angers, France. E-mail Laurent.loufrani{at}wanadoo.fr

Objectives— Mutations in the dystrophin gene causing Duchenne’s muscular dystrophy (DMD) lead to premature stop codons. In mice lacking dystrophin (mdx mice), a model for DMD, these mutations can be suppressed by aminoglycosides such as gentamicin. Dystrophin plays a role in flow (shear stress)-mediated endothelium-dependent dilation (FMD) in arteries. We investigated the effect of gentamicin on vascular contractile and dilatory functions, vascular structure, and density in mdx mice.

Methods and Results— Isolated mice carotid and mesenteric resistance arteries were mounted in arteriographs allowing continuous diameter measurements. Mdx mice showed lower nitric oxide (NO)-dependent FMD and endothelial NO synthase (eNOS) expression as well as decreased vascular density in gracilis and cardiac muscles compared with control mice. Treatment with gentamycin restored these parameters. In contrast, smooth muscle–dependent contractions as well as endothelium-dependent or -independent dilation were not affected by dystrophin deficiency or by gentamicin treatment.

Conclusion— Dystrophin deficiency induces a selective defect in flow-dependent mechanotransduction, thus attenuating FMD and eNOS expression, and may contribute to low arteriolar density. These findings open important perspectives regarding the mechanism involved in the pathophysiology of genetic diseases related to premature stop codons such as DMD.

Key Words: Duchenne’s muscular dystrophy • blood vessels • flow-mediated dilation • endothelium • vasodilation • arteriolar density

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