Aortic Stiffness and Diastolic Dysfunction in Sprague Dawley Rats Consuming Short-Term Fructose Plus High Salt Diet.

Introduction: High fructose and salt consumption continues to be prevalent in western society. Existing studies show that a rat model reflecting a diet of fructose and salt consumed by the upper 20th percentile of the human population results in salt-sensitive hypertension mitigated by treatment with an antioxidant. We hypothesized that dietary fructose, rather than glucose, combined with high salt leads to aortic stiffening and decreased renal artery compliance.