Failure of psychosocial stress to induce chronic hypertension in the rat.

Abstract

The effect of psychosocial stress produced by aggregation in a special cage designed by Henry was investigated in three separate experiments using Wistar-Kyoto (WKY), Sprague-Dawley (SD) and F1 hybrids of the Japanese spontaneously hypertensive and Wistar-Kyoto (SHR-WKY F1) rats. Each aggregated group displayed typical 'stressed' behavioural disturbances. Adrenal hypertrophy, elevation of plasma renin activity and gastric erosions were noted in male aggregated SD rats; while adrenal enlargement, elevation of plasma noradrenaline and gastric erosions were found in male aggregated SHR-WKY F1 rats. Sustained hypertension, however, did not develop in any strain nor in any subgroup within each st..