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. 2014 Apr;27(1):51-6.
doi: 10.1293/tox.2012-0032. Epub 2014 Apr 30.

Establishment of a model of spontaneously-running-Tokushima-shikoku rats with left atrial thrombosis

Takamasa Ohnishi  1 , Fumiko Hisaoka  2 , Masaki Morishima  3 , Akira Takahashi  3 , Nagakatsu Harada  3 , Kazuaki Mawatari  3 , Hidekazu Arai  4 , Emiko Yoshioka  3 , Satomi Toda  3 , Izumi Keisuke  5 , Yutaka Nakaya  3
Affiliations

Establishment of a model of spontaneously-running-Tokushima-shikoku rats with left atrial thrombosis

Takamasa Ohnishi et al. J Toxicol Pathol. 2014 Apr.

Erratum in

  • Errata (Printer's correction).
    [No authors listed] [No authors listed] J Toxicol Pathol. 2016 Jan;29(1):74. Epub 2016 Feb 17. J Toxicol Pathol. 2016. PMID: 26989306 Free PMC article.

Abstract

Studies that investigate the underlying mechanisms of disease and treatment options typically require the use of a suitable animal model. Few suitable animal models exist for left atrial thrombosis. Here, we demonstrated that the Spontaneously-Running-Tokushima-Shikoku (SPORTS) rat - a Wistar strain known for its running ability-is predisposed to the development of thrombi in the left atrium. We investigated the incidence of left atrial thrombosis in male (n = 16) and female (n = 17) SPORTS rats and observed organized atrial thrombosis in 57% and 38% of males and female rats, respectively. In the male rats, systolic blood pressures and heart rates were significantly higher in SPORTS rats than in control Wistar rats. We could not find any evidence of arrhythmias, such as atrial fibrillation, during electrocardiographic examination of SPORTS rats. We believe that the SPORTS rat could serve as a new research model for left atrial thrombosis; further, it may be suitable for research investigating the development of new antithrombotic approaches for the control of atrial thrombosis or familial thrombophilia in humans.

Keywords: atrial thrombosis; heart; rat.

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Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
TSH, T3 and T4 levels in SPORTS and control rats
Fig. 2.
Fig. 2.
Macroscopic findings in the heart of a SPORTS rat. A hard white thrombus in the left atrium.
Fig. 3.
Fig. 3.
Light micrograph of thrombosis in the left atrium (panel A, hematoxylin and eosin staining; B, van Gieson staining). An organized thrombus is present in the left atrium.
Fig. 4.
Fig. 4.
Light micrograph of the lung of a SPORTS rat (hematoxylin and eosin staining). Many foam cells are present in the pulmonary alveoli.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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