Open Access

Florian Custodis, Peter Fries, Andreas Müller, Christoph Stamm, Markus Grube, Heyo K. Kroemer, Michael Böhm, Ulrich Laufs

• Background: Impaired vascular compliance is associated with cardiovascular mortality. The effects of heart rate on vascular compliance are unclear. Therefore, we characterized effects of heart rate reduction (HRR) by I(f) current inhibition on aortic compliance and underlying molecular mechanisms in apolipoprotein E-deficient (ApoE^–/^–) mice. Methods: ApoE^–/^– mice fed a high-cholesterol diet and wild-type (WT) mice were treated with ivabradine (20 mg/kg/d) or vehicle for 6 weeks. Compliance of the ascending aorta was evaluated by MRI. Results: Ivabradine reduced heart rate by 113 ± 31 bpm (∼19%) in WT mice and by 133 ± 6 bpm (∼23%) in ApoE^–/^– mice. Compared to WT controls, ApoE^–/^– mice exhibited reduced distensibility and circumferential strain. HRR by ivabradine increased distensibility and circumferential strain in ApoE^–/^– mice but did not affect both parameters in WT mice. Ivabradine reduced aortic protein and mRNA expression of the angiotensin II type 1 (AT1) receptor and reduced rac1-GTPase activity in ApoE^–/^– mice. Moreover, membrane translocation of p47^phox was inhibited. In ApoE^–/^– mice, HRR induced anti-inflammatory effects by reduction of aortic mRNA expression of IL-6, TNF-alpha and TGF-beta. Conclusion: HRR by ivabradine improves vascular compliance in ApoE^–/^– mice. Contributing mechanisms include downregulation of the AT1 receptor, attenuation of oxidative stress and modulation of inflammatory cytokine expression.