High-fat diet-induced obesity impairs endothelium-dependent relaxation in rabbits: association with MLCK upregulation and partial ex vivo improvement by ML-7 - Takeaways - MDSpire

High-fat diet-induced obesity impairs endothelium-dependent relaxation in rabbits: association with MLCK upregulation and partial ex vivo improvement by ML-7

  • By

  • Jiao Li

  • Jiantao Zhou

  • Qingxu Ha

  • Junwei Gu

  • Hui Yuan

  • Juan Cheng

  • Xiaojun Zha

  • Jingjing Teng

  • Liang Li

  • Junli Ding

  • May 11, 2026

  • 0 min

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  • 1

    High-fat diet-induced obesity in rabbits resulted in significant endothelial dysfunction, characterized by impaired flow-mediated dilation and reduced aortic relaxation.

  • 2

    Obese rabbits exhibited increased myosin light chain kinase (MLCK) expression and phosphorylation of myosin light chain (MLC), indicating vascular injury mechanisms.

  • 3

    ML-7 treatment reduced MLCK expression and partially restored endothelium-dependent relaxation in aortic rings, demonstrating potential therapeutic effects.

  • 4

    Despite improvements in ex vivo relaxation, ML-7 did not enhance in vivo flow-mediated dilation, highlighting the complexity of vascular dysfunction.

  • 5

    The study underscores the need for caution in using flow-mediated dilation as a sole indicator of endothelial health in preclinical research.

Original Source(s)

High-fat diet-induced obesity impairs endothelium-dependent relaxation in rabbits: association with MLCK upregulation and partial ex vivo improvement by ML-7

  • by Jiao Li, Jiantao Zhou, Qingxu Ha, Junwei Gu, Hui Yuan, Juan Cheng, Xiaojun Zha, Jingjing Teng, Liang Li, Junli Ding

  • May 11, 2026

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