Figure 3.

The disturbance of post-stenotic dilatation by the bilateral ovariectomy in female rats. 10-week-old female Sprague−Dawley rats were subjected to the bilateral ovariectomy or a sham-operation. On the 7th day, animals underwent the carotid ligation and the post-stenotic dilatation was observed for following 30 min (a). In some animals, hormone replacement therapy (HRT) was applied after the bilateral ovariectomy (b). Representative macroscopic images of the carotid artery before (pre) and 30 min after the ligation (30 min) are shown. The diameter of the carotid artery was calculated before (pre), just after (0 min) and 30 min after the ligation (30 min). Bars indicate the mean ± SEM (n = 4). Statistical analysis was done by a Welch’s t test. ***; p < 0.001.