High Salt Diet Induces Aldosterone Synthase Elevation in Adrenal and Visceral Adipose Tissue - A Potential Culprit for Unsuppressed Aldosterone Levels in Female BALB/c Mice
Authors: Menik Ishara M. G. , Barris Candee T. , Kress Taylor C. , Kennard Simone , Belin de Chantemèle Eric J. 
Published: May 2024

Women are more salt-sensitive than men, irrespective of age, menopausal status, or ethnic background. Nonetheless, the mechanisms predisposing women to salt sensitivity of blood pressure (SSBP) are poorly understood, notably due to the diffculty in finding appropriate animal models. Previously, we demonstrated that female BALB/c mice spontaneously develop SSBP, likely through an inability to reduce the expression of adrenal aldosterone synthase (CYP11B2) appropriately, which leads to unsuppressed aldosterone levels in response to high salt intake. Herein, we aim to decipher the mechanism involved in SSBP in female BALB/c mice by comparing them to female salt-resistant C57BL/6 mice. Eleven-week-old female BALB/c and C57BL/6J mice were fed either a normal (0.4%, NSD) or a high salt diet (4%, HSD) for seven days. HSD significantly reduced adrenal aldosterone synthase transcript and protein expression in female C57BL/6 mice compared to those on a NSD. Conversely, HSD substantially increased CYP11B2 levels in BALB/c female mice when compared to strain-matched NSD and C57BL/6 NSD mice (2-way ANOVA, p<0.05). HSD induced a more significant aldosterone drop in C57BL/6 versus BALB/c mice (C57BL/6: 72% vs. BALB/c: 49%). Remarkably, HSD led to an increase in CYP11B2 in the visceral adipose tissue (VAT) of BALB/c mice in comparison to strain-matched NSD mice, while no such alteration was observed between C57BL/6 NSD and HSD. We previously showed that leptin regulates CYP11B2 expression. We report here that HSD increased leptin receptor (lepR) expression in adrenal and VAT from BALB/c mice in comparison to both strain-matched NSD and C57BL/6 NSD. Baseline levels of leptin were similar in C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice. However, BALB/c mice on HSD displayed increased levels of leptin compared to its strain-matched NSD mice, while no such alteration was observed in C57BL/6 mice. Furthermore, female BALB/c mice on HSD displayed elevated endothelial cell-specific mineralocorticoid receptor (ECMR) expression compared to female C57BL/6 NSD and HSD mice (2-way ANOVA, p<0.05). Endothelium-dependent relaxation to acetylcholine was significantly reduced in the female BALB/c mice on HSD compared to strain-matched NSD and C57BL/6 NSD (n = 3, 2-way ANOVA, P < 0.05). Interestingly, on NSD, C57BL/6 mice present a better endothelial function than BALB/c, which was not altered by HSD. Collectively, our data supports an overactivation of the leptin-CYP11B2-aldosterone axis in both adrenals and VAT, leading to inappropriate aldosterone levels, which, associated with higher ECMR expression, induce endothelial dysfunction in BALB/c mice. Together, these mechanisms are likely the cause of SSBP in female BALB/c mice. Funding: R01HL130301, R01HL155265 (E.J.B.). This is the full abstract presented at the American Physiology Summit 2024 meeting and is only available in HTML format. There are no additional versions or additional content available for this abstract. Physiology was not involved in the peer review process.