Establishing a Standardized Renal Artery Ligation Procedure for Hypertension in Syrian Golden Hamsters.

Source: PubMed, NCBI / U.S. National Library of Medicine

Hypertension is considered a major global health threat, which​ can lead to severe complications, including vascular remodeling, heart failure, myocardial infarction, and end-stage renal disease. Syrian golden hamsters, a model with naturally expressing cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP), are susceptible to diet-induced hyperlipidemia. To establish a reliable and reproducible hamster model for studying the relationship between renal artery stenosis (RAS), secondary hypertension, and cardiovascular disease, the two-kidney, one-clip (2K1C) Goldblatt model was employed. This study details a refined surgical procedure for inducing RAS in Syrian golden hamsters via partial renal artery ligation, emphasizing critical factors such as surgical isolation technique and ligature material selection, which significantly impact outcomes. Implementation of this standardized surgical protocol resulted in approximately 90% of treated hamsters exhibiting a consistent systolic blood pressure elevation of 25-30 mmHg. This optimized renal artery ligation procedure provides a robust method for generating a hypertensive hamster model with high consistency, enhanced reproducibility, and utility for cardiovascular disease research.