Excess NaCl increases blood pressure in some strains of animals but not others. An 8% NaCl diet did not change renal thiazide receptor (TZR) density in two salt-resistant normotensive rat strains (Wistar-Kyoto and Sprague-Dawley) [Fanestil, D. D., D. A. Vaughn, and P. Blakely. Am. J. Physiol. 273 (Regulatory Integrative Comp. Physiol. 42): R1241-R1245, 1997]. However, the renal response to salt differs in normal and hypertensive kidneys [Rettig, R., N. Bandelow, O. Patschan, B. Kuttler, B. Frey, and A. Uber. J. Hum. Hypertens. 10: 641-644, 1996]. Therefore, we examined two strains with salt-aggravated hypertension. Renal TZR did not change when Dahl-S (salt sensitive) animals became hypertensive with 8% dietary NaCl. In contrast, renal TZR decreased 34%, whereas blood pressure increased further, in SHR with 8% dietary NaCl. Blood pressure increased after N^G-nitro-L-arginine in SHR, but renal TZR did not change, indicating the salt-induced decrease in TZR in SHR cannot be attributed nonspecifically to elevated arterial pressure. We conclude that the renal response to NaCl-induced increases in blood pressure can be genetically modulated independently of the genes that mediate either the primary hypertension or the salt sensitivity of the hypertension. This finding may be of use in future studies directed at identifying genotypes associated with salt-dependent hypertension.

diuretics; distal convoluted tubule; pressure natriuresis