Fig. 2

Left ventricular volumes increase more strongly in female AR rats than in males compared to sham-operated animals. End-diastolic (EDV; a and b) and end-systolic (ESV; d and e) LV volumes were estimated using three-dimensional reconstruction of stacked LV short axis (SAX) views in sham (blue) and AR (red) male and female rats at four different time points over a 6 months after surgery. LV ejection fraction (EF; g and h) stroke volume (SV; j and k) were then calculated using the equation described in the Methods section. Ratios of the mean values for each parameter in AR rats over sham ones was calculated for each time point and are illustrated in Panels c, f, i and l. Results are expressed as mean ± standard error of the mean (SEM; N = 8–10 animals/group). *: p < 0.05 and **: p < 0.01 between corresponding sham and AR groups at a given time point