Effect of dietary alpha-linolenic acid on vascular reactivity in aorta of spontaneously hypertensive rats.

Several studies of hypertension have shown that dietary alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) has a blood pressure-lowering effect. In the present study, we investigated the effect of dietary ALA on endothelium-dependent vascular reactivity in six-week-old spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). At the end of the feeding period, systolic blood pressure in the ALA group was significantly lower than in the control group. There was no significant difference in endothelium-dependent vasorelaxant response between the two diet groups. There was also no significant inter-group difference in the vascular wall thickness and media-to-lumen ratio. In conclusion, the present findings suggest that the blood pressure-lowering mechanism of dietary ALA does not involve increased sensitivity to NO or a change the in vascular morphology of the aorta.