An orally active epoxide hydrolase inhibitor lowers blood pressure and provides renal protection in salt-sensitive hypertension

The present study tested the hypothesis that increasing epoxyeicosatrienoic acids by inhibition of soluble epoxide hydrolase (sEH) would lower blood pressure and ameliorate renal damage in salt-sensitive hypertension. Rats were infused with angiotensin and fed a normal-salt diet or an 8% NaCl diet for 14 days. The sEH inhibitor, 12-(3-adamantan-1-yl-ureido)-dodecanoic acid (AUDA), was given orally to angiotensin-infused animals during the 14-day period. Plasma AUDA metabolite levels were measured, and they averaged 10 +/- 2 ng/mL in normal-salt angiotensin hypertension and 19 3 ng/mL in high-salt angiotensin hypertension on day 14 in the animals administered the sEH inhibitor. Mean arterial blood pressure averaged 161 +/- 4 mmHg in normal-salt and 172 +/- 5 mmHg in the high-salt angiotensin hypertension groups on day 14. EH inhibitor treatment significantly lowered blood pressure to 140 +/- 5 mm Hg in the normal-salt angiotensin hypertension group and to 151 +/- 6 mm Hg in the high-salt angiotensin hypertension group on day 14. The lower arterial blood pressures in the AUDA-treated groups were associated with increased urinary epoxide-to-diol ratios. Urinary microalbumin levels were measured, and ED-1 staining was used to determine renal damage and macrophage infiltration in the groups. Two weeks of AUDA treatment decreased urinary microalbumin excretion in the normal-salt and high-salt angiotensin hypertension groups and macrophage number in the high-salt angiotensin hypertension group. These data demonstrate that sEH inhibition lowers blood pressure and ameliorates renal damage in angiotensin-dependent, salt-sensitive hypertension.