scholarly journals Reduced c-Fos expression in medullary catecholaminergic neurons in rats 20 h after exposure to chronic intermittent hypoxia

2013 ◽  
Vol 304 (7) ◽  
pp. R514-R522 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kate Benincasa Herr ◽  
Georg M. Stettner ◽  
Leszek Kubin

Persons affected by obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) have increased arterial blood pressure and elevated activity in upper airway muscles. Many cardiorespiratory features of OSA have been reproduced in rodents subjected to chronic-intermittent hypoxia (CIH). We previously reported that, following exposure to CIH, rats have increased noradrenergic terminal density in brain stem sensory and motor nuclei and upregulated expression of the excitatory α1-adrenergic receptors in the hypoglossal motor nucleus. This suggested that CIH may enhance central catecholaminergic transmission. We now quantified c-Fos expression in different groups of pontomedullary catecholaminergic neurons as an indirect way of assessing their baseline activity in rats subjected to CIH or sham treatment (7 AM-5 PM daily for 35 days). One day after the last CIH exposure, the rats were gently kept awake for 2.5 h and then were anesthetized and perfused, and their pontomedullary brain sections were subjected to dopamine β-hydroxylase (DBH) and c-Fos immunohistochemistry. DBH-positive cells were counted in the A1/C1, A2/C2, A5, subcoeruleus (sub-C) and A7 groups of catecholaminergic neurons, and the percentages of those expressing c-Fos were determined. We found that fewer DBH cells expressed c-Fos in CIH- than in sham-treated rats in the medulla (significant in the A1 group). In the pons (rostral A5, sub-C, and A7), c-Fos expression did not differ between the CIH- and sham-treated animals. We suggest that, when measured 20 h after the last CIH exposure, catecholaminergic transmission is enhanced through terminal sprouting and receptor upregulation rather than through increased baseline activity in pontomedullary catecholaminergic neurons.

2012 ◽  
Vol 112 (2) ◽  
pp. 305-312 ◽  
Author(s):  
Georg M. Stettner ◽  
Victor B. Fenik ◽  
Leszek Kubin

In obstructive sleep apnea patients, elevated activity of the lingual muscles during wakefulness protects the upper airway against occlusions. A possibly related form of respiratory neuroplasticity is present in rats exposed to acute and chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH). Since rats exposed to CIH have increased density of noradrenergic terminals and increased α1-adrenoceptor immunoreactivity in the hypoglossal (XII) nucleus, we investigated whether these anatomic indexes of increased noradrenergic innervation translate to increased sensitivity of XII motoneurons to noradrenergic activation. Adult male Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to CIH for 35 days, with O2 level varying between 24% and 7% with 180-s period for 10 h/day. They were then anesthetized, vagotomized, paralyzed, and artificially ventilated. The dorsal medulla was exposed, and phenylephrine (2 mM, 10 nl) and then the α1-adrenoceptor antagonist prazosin (0.2 mM, 3 × 40 nl) were microinjected into the XII nucleus while XII nerve activity (XIIa) was recorded. The area under integrated XIIa was measured before and at different times after microinjections. The excitatory effect of phenylephrine on XII motoneurons was similar in sham- and CIH-treated rats. In contrast, spontaneous XIIa was more profoundly reduced following prazosin injections in CIH- than sham-treated rats [to 21 ± 7% (SE) vs. 40 ± 8% of baseline, P < 0.05] without significant changes in central respiratory rate, arterial blood pressure, or heart rate. Thus, consistent with increased neuroanatomic measures of noradrenergic innervation of XII motoneurons following exposure to CIH, prazosin injections revealed a stronger endogenous noradrenergic excitatory drive to XII motoneurons in CIH- than sham-treated anesthetized rats.


2018 ◽  
Vol 2018 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ying Zou ◽  
Wei Wang ◽  
Xinshi Nie ◽  
Jian Kang

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is characterized by the repetitive collapse of the upper airway and chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) during sleep. It has been reported that CIH can increase the EMG activity of genioglossus in rats, which may be related to the neuromuscular compensation of OSA patients. This study aimed to explore whether CIH could induce the long-term facilitation (LTF) of genioglossus corticomotor activity. 16 rats were divided into the air group (n=8) and the CIH group (n=8). The CIH group was exposed to hypoxia for 4 weeks; the air group was subjected to air under identical experimental conditions in parallel. Transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) was applied every ten minutes and lasted for 1 h/day on the 1st, 3rd, 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th days of air/CIH exposure. Genioglossus EMG was also recorded at the same time. Compared with the air group, the CIH group showed decreased TMS latency from 10 to 60 minutes on the 7th, 14th, 21st, and 28th days. The increased TMS amplitude lasting for 60 minutes was only observed on the 21st day. Genioglossus EMG activity increased only on the 28th day of CIH. We concluded that CIH could induce LTF of genioglossus corticomotor activity in rats.


2016 ◽  
Vol 2016 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Esteban A. Moya ◽  
Paulina Arias ◽  
Carlos Varela ◽  
María P. Oyarce ◽  
Rodrigo Del Rio ◽  
...  

Oxidative stress is involved in the development of carotid body (CB) chemosensory potentiation and systemic hypertension induced by chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH), the main feature of obstructive sleep apnea. We tested whether peroxynitrite (ONOO−), a highly reactive nitrogen species, is involved in the enhanced CB oxygen chemosensitivity and the hypertension during CIH. Accordingly, we studied effects of Ebselen, an ONOO−scavenger, on 3-nitrotyrosine immunoreactivity (3-NT-ir) in the CB, the CB chemosensory discharge, and arterial blood pressure (BP) in rats exposed to CIH. Male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to CIH (5% O2, 12 times/h, 8 h/day) for 7 days. Ebselen (10 mg/kg/day) was administrated using osmotic minipumps and BP measured with radiotelemetry. Compared to the sham animals, CIH-treated rats showed increased 3-NT-ir within the CB, enhanced CB chemosensory responses to hypoxia, increased BP response to acute hypoxia, and hypertension. Rats treated with Ebselen and exposed to CIH displayed a significant reduction in 3-NT-ir levels (60.8 ± 14.9 versus 22.9 ± 4.2 a.u.), reduced CB chemosensory response to 5% O2(266.5 ± 13.4 versus 168.6 ± 16.8 Hz), and decreased mean BP (116.9 ± 13.2 versus 82.1 ± 5.1 mmHg). Our results suggest that CIH-induced CB chemosensory potentiation and hypertension are critically dependent on ONOO−formation.


2016 ◽  
Vol 310 (11) ◽  
pp. H1549-H1557 ◽  
Author(s):  
Heather Jameson ◽  
Ryan Bateman ◽  
Peter Byrne ◽  
Jhansi Dyavanapalli ◽  
Xin Wang ◽  
...  

Hypertension is a common outcome associated with obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a prevalent yet poorly treated cardiovascular disease. Recent studies showed oxytocin (OXT), released from hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) neurons, activates cardiac vagal neurons in the dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus (DMNX) and may blunt cardiovascular responses to stress. This study tests whether the release of OXT from PVN fibers in the DMNX is diminished with chronic intermittent hypoxia-hypercapnia (CIH/H) exposure, an animal model of OSA, and whether activation of PVN OXT neurons restores OXT release in the DMNX and prevents the hypertension resulting from CIH/H. To assess OXT release from PVN fibers, Chinese hamster ovarian (CHO) cells were engineered to be highly sensitive to OXT by stable expression of the human recombinant OXT receptor and the calcium indicator R-GECO1. PVN fibers in the DMNX were selectively photoactivated in vitro by expression of channelrhodopsin. The release of OXT onto CHO cells in the DMNX was blunted in rats exposed to 21 days of CIH/H. Chronic activation of PVN OXT neurons in vivo, using designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs, restored the release of OXT onto CHO cells in the DMNX. Chronic PVN OXT neuron activation in vivo also prevented the hypertension that occurred in conscious unrestrained telemetry-equipped sham rats exposed to 3 wk of CIH/H. These results demonstrate that chronic activation of OXT neurons restores the release of OXT from PVN fibers in the DMNX and prevents the hypertension that occurs with 3 wk of CIH/H exposure.


2007 ◽  
Vol 293 (5) ◽  
pp. H2809-H2818 ◽  
Author(s):  
He Gu ◽  
Min Lin ◽  
Jianyu Liu ◽  
David Gozal ◽  
Karie E. Scrogin ◽  
...  

Baroreflex control of heart rate (HR) is impaired after chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH). However, the location and nature of this response remain unclear. We examined baroreceptor afferent, vagal efferent, and central components of the baroreflex circuitry. Fischer 344 (F344) rats were exposed to room air (RA) or CIH for 35–50 days and were then anesthetized with isoflurane, ventilated, and catheterized for measurement of mean arterial blood pressure (MAP) and HR. Baroreceptor function was characterized by measuring percent changes of integrated aortic depressor nerve (ADN) activity (Int ADNA) relative to the baseline value in response to sodium nitroprusside- and phenylephrine-induced changes in MAP. Data were fitted to a sigmoid logistic function curve. HR responses to electrical stimulation of the left ADN and the right vagus nerve were assessed under ketamine-acepromazine anesthesia. Compared with RA controls, CIH significantly increased maximum baroreceptor gain or maximum slope, maximum Int ADNA, and Int ADNA range (maximum − minimum Int ADNA), whereas other parameters of the logistic function were unchanged. In addition, CIH increased the maximum amplitude of bradycardic response to vagal efferent stimulation and decreased the time from stimulus onset to peak response. In contrast, CIH significantly reduced the maximum amplitude of bradycardic response to left ADN stimulation and increased the time from stimulus onset to peak response. Therefore, CIH decreased central mediation of the baroreflex but augmented baroreceptor afferent function and vagal efferent control of HR.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Badran ◽  
Bisher Abuyassin ◽  
Najib Ayas ◽  
Don D. Sin ◽  
Ismail Laher

AbstractObstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a chronic condition characterized by chronic intermittent hypoxia (IH) and is associated with cardiovascular (CVD) and chronic kidney diseases (CKD). There is increased biomarkers of aging, such as telomere shortening, in patients with OSA. We assessed telomere lengths in aortic and renal tissues from mice exposed to 8 weeks of IH using a PCR protocol, and demonstrate significant telomere shortening in both tissues. This data indicates that IH, a hallmark of OSA, can accelerate vascular and renal aging that may contribute to OSA-induced CVD and CKD


2019 ◽  
pp. 445-455
Author(s):  
Y. WANG ◽  
L. AI ◽  
B. HAI ◽  
Y. CAO ◽  
R. LI ◽  
...  

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) has been demonstrated to be implicated in disorder of insulin secretion and diabetes mellitus. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the protective role of tempol, a powerful antioxidant, in chronic intermittent hypoxia (IH)-induced pancreatic injury. The rat model of OSA was established by IH exposure. The pathological changes, increased blood-glucose level, and raised proinsulin/insulin ratio in pancreatic tissues of rats received IH were effectively relieved by tempol delivery. In addition, the enhanced levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, and inflammatory mediators, PGE2, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), NO, and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) in pancreatic tissue were suppressed by tempol. Moreover, tempol inhibited IH-induced apoptosis in pancreatic tissue as evidenced by upregulated Bcl-2 level, and downregulated Bax and cleaved caspase-3 levels. Finally, the abnormal activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB) signaling pathways induced by IH was restrained by tempol administration. In summary, our study demonstrates that tempol relieves IH-induced pancreatic injury by inhibiting inflammatory response and apoptosis, which provides theoretical basis for tempol as an effective treatment for OSA-induced pancreatic injury.


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