The link between hypertension and cerebral small vessel disease is key to understanding pathobiology of certain types of dementia. We studied the effects of mild hypertension on a newly discovered pathway for clearance of solutes from the brain parenchyma in young spontaneously hypertensive rats using DCE-MRI after intrathecal infusion of a paramagnetic contrast agent. We found normal-to-increased tracer influx and decreased efflux to and from the brain parenchyma, consistent with a lowered efficiency of brain solute clearance. This suggests that a compromised brain waste transport system may be implicated in the development of cerebral small vessel disease and dementia.
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