Effect of hypertension on blood-brain barrier. Change after restoration of blood flow in post-ischemic gerbil brains. An electronmicroscopic study.

The effect of induced hypertension on the blood-brain barrier (BBB) change in Mongolian gerbils exposed to various periods of ischemia was studied. Evans blue dye was used to determine the BBB change in animals subjected to different levels of hypertension after 3 h ischemia. Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) was used in electronmicroscopic studies of animals subjected to 30 min, 1, 3 or 6 h ischemia and subsequently exposed for 30 min to varying periods and sequences of normo- and hypertension. Furthermore, HRP-labeled vesicle counts were performed in animals from the 30-min ischemia group. Our findings revealed that hypertension, after blood flow restoration following ischemia, induces and/or accelerates BBB damage by enhancing endothelial vesicular and/or tubulo-channel transport.