Blunted EDH-mediated relaxations in the rat mesenteric artery have also been associated with decreased expression, of SKCa and IKCa in angiotensin II-induced hypertension [30], chronic bile duct ligation-induced portal hypertension [31], and middle-aged rats [32], with decreased expression levels of Cx37 and Cx40 in the mesenteric artery of spontaneously hypertensive rats [33], and with a decreased expression levels of Cx37, Cx40, and Cx43 in the mesenteric artery of angiotensin II-treated rats [28]. This evidence concerns the gene GJA1 and portal hypertension.