thiourea and Hypoxia

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PH), a progressive, incurable, and deadly disease, predominantly develops in women. Growing body of evidence suggest that dysregulated estradiol (E2) metabolism influences the development of PH and that some of the biological effects of E2 are mediated by its major non-estrogenic metabolite, 2-metyhoxyestradiol (2ME). The objective of this study was to examine effects of 2ME in chronic hypoxia (CH)-induced PH and alpha-naphthylthiourea (ANTU)-induced acute lung injury and PH. In addition, we investigated the effects of exposure to different levels of CH on development of PH. Chronic exposure to 15% or 10% oxygen produced similar increases in right ventricle peak systolic pressure (RVPSP) and pulmonary vascular remodeling, but oxygen concentration-dependent increase in hematocrit. Notably, right ventricle (RV) hypertrophy correlated with level of hypoxia and hematocrit, rather than with magnitude of RVPSP. The latter suggests that, in addition to increased afterload, hypoxia (via increased hematocrit) significantly contributes to RV hypertrophy in CH model of PH. In CH-PH rats, preventive and curative 2ME treatments reduced both elevated RVPSP and pulmonary vascular remodeling. Curative treatment with 2ME was more effective in reducing hematocrit and right ventricular hypertrophy, as compared to preventive treatment. Single ANTU injection produced lung injury, i.e., increased lungs weight and induced pleural effusion. Treatment with 2ME significantly reduced pleural effusion and, more importantly, eliminated acute mortality induced by ANTU (33% vs 0%, ANTU vs. ANTU+2ME group). Chronic treatment with ANTU induced PH and RV hypertrophy and increased lungs weight. 2-ME significantly attenuated severity of disease (i.e., reduced RVPSP, RV hypertrophy and pulmonary vascular injury). This study demonstrates that 2ME has beneficial effects in chronic hypoxia- and acute lung injury-induced PH and provides preclinical justification for clinical evaluation of 2ME in pulmonary hypertension.

Topics: 2-Methoxyestradiol; Animals; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Hypoxia; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Thiourea

To examine the role of mechanical force and hypoxia on chondrocytes apoptosis and osteoarthritis (OA)-liked pathological change on mandibular cartilage through over-activation of endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS).. We used two in vitro models to examine the effect of mechanical force and hypoxia on chondrocytes apoptosis separately. The mandibular condylar chondrocytes were obtained from three-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rats. Flexcell 5000T apparatus was used to produce mechanical forces (12%, 0.5Hz, 24h vs 20%, 0.5Hz, 24h) on chondrocytes. For hypoxia experiment, the concentration of O. Tunicamycin, 20% mechanical forces and hypoxia (1% O. We confirmed that mechanical stress and local hypoxia both contributed to the chondrocytes apoptosis. Mechanical stress can cause OA-like pathological change in rat mandibular condylar cartilage via ERS activation and hypoxia existed in the meantime. Both mechanical forces and hypoxia can induce ERS and cause chondrocytes apoptosis only if the stimulate was in higher level. Salubrinal can protect chondrocytes from apoptosis, and relieve OA-liked pathological change on mandibular condylar cartilage under mechanical stress stimulation.

Topics: Animals; Apoptosis; Blotting, Western; Cartilage, Articular; Chondrocytes; Cinnamates; Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress; Hypoxia; Immunohistochemistry; In Situ Nick-End Labeling; In Vitro Techniques; Male; Mandibular Condyle; Osteoarthritis; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; Stress, Mechanical; Thiourea; Tunicamycin

Increased endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and autophagy have been noted in the placentas of pregnancies complicated by idiopathic intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR); however, the cause of these phenomena remains unclear. We surmised that oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) may increase ER stress and autophagy and that mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling is involved in regulating placental ER stress and autophagy in pregnancies complicated by IUGR.. We obtained placentas from women with normal term pregnancies and pregnancies complicated by IUGR to compare ER stress, mTOR signaling, and levels of autophagy-related proteins between the two groups and used primary cytotrophoblast cells treated with or without salubrinal (an ER stress inhibitor), MHY1485 (an mTOR activator), or rapamycin (an mTOR inhibitor) to investigate the effects of OGD on ER stress, mTOR activity, and autophagy levels in vitro.. Women with pregnancies complicated by IUGR displayed higher placental ER stress and autophagy levels but lower mTOR activity than women with normal pregnancies. Furthermore, OGD increased ER stress, regulated in development and DNA damage responses-1 (REDD1), phosphorylated tuberous sclerosis complex 2 (TSC2), and autophagy levels and decreased mTOR activity compared to the standard culture condition; however, the salubrinal treatment attenuated these changes. Moreover, the administration of MHY1485 or rapamycin to OGD-treated cells decreased or increased autophagy levels, respectively.. Based on our results, mTOR is a mechanistic link between OGD-induced ER stress and autophagy in cytotrophoblast cells; thus, mTOR plays an essential role in the pathogenesis of pregnancies complicated by IUGR.

Topics: Adult; Autophagy; Cinnamates; Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress; Female; Fetal Growth Retardation; Glucose; Humans; Hypoxia; Morpholines; Placenta; Pregnancy; Sirolimus; Thiourea; TOR Serine-Threonine Kinases; Triazines

The phosphorylation of eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 alpha (p-eIF2α) is essential for cell survival during hypoxia. The aim of this study was to investigate whether salubrinal, an inhibitor of p-eIF2α dephosphorylation could attenuate pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and right ventricular (RV) hypertrophy in rats exposed to hypobaric hypoxia. PAH of rats was induced by hypobaric hypoxia. Salubrinal supplemented was randomized in either a prevention or a reversal protocol. At the end of the follow-up point, we measured echocardiography, hemodynamics, hematoxylin-eosin and Masson's trichrome stainings. RNA-seq analysis is explored to identify changes in gene expression associated with hypobaric hypoxia with or without salubrinal. Compared with vehicle-treatment rats exposed to hypobaric hypoxia, salubrinal prevented and partly reversed the increase of the mean pulmonary artery pressure and RV hypertrophy. What's more, salubrinal reduced the percentage wall thickness (WT%) of pulmonary artery and RV collagen volume fraction (CVF) in both prevention and reversal protocols. We also found that salubrinal was capable of reducing endoplasmic reticulum stress and oxidative stress. The result of RNA-seq analysis revealed that chronic hypoxia stimulated the differential expression of a series of genes involved in cell cycle regulation and ventricular hypertrophy and so on. Some of these genes could be ameliorated by salubrinal. These results indicate that salubrinal could prevent and reverse well-established RV remodeling, and restore the genes and pathways altered in the right ventricles of rats exposed to hypobaric hypoxia.

Topics: Animals; Cinnamates; Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress; Eukaryotic Initiation Factor-2; Gene Expression Regulation; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Hypertrophy, Right Ventricular; Hypoxia; Male; Oxidative Stress; Phosphorylation; Random Allocation; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Thiourea; Ventricular Dysfunction, Right; Ventricular Remodeling

When exposed to a hypoxic environment, the body's first response is a reflex increase in ventilation, termed the hypoxic ventilatory response (HVR). With chronic sustained hypoxia (CSH), such as during acclimatization to high altitude, an additional time-dependent increase in ventilation occurs, which increases the HVR and is termed ventilatory acclimatization to hypoxia (VAH). This secondary increase persists after exposure to CSH and involves plasticity within the circuits in the central nervous system that control breathing. The mechanisms of HVR plasticity are currently poorly understood. We hypothesized that changes in neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) activity or expression in the nucleus tractus solitarius contribute to this plasticity and underlie VAH in rats. To test this, we treated rats held in normoxia or 10% O2 (CSH, PIO2 = 70 Torr) for 7-9 days and measured ventilation in conscious, unrestrained animals before and after microinjecting the general NOS antagonist L-NG-Nitroarginine methyl ester into the nucleus tractus solitarius (NTS) or systemically injecting the nNOS-specific antagonist S-methyl-l-thiocitrulline. Localization of injection sites in the NTS was confirmed by histology following the experiment. We found that 1) neither NTS-specific nor systemic nNOS antagonism had any effect on hypoxia-mediated changes in breathing or metabolism (P > 0.05), but 2) nNOS protein expression was increased in the middle and caudal NTS by CSH. A persistent HVR after nNOS blockade in the NTS contrasts with results in awake mice, and our findings do not support the hypotheses that nNOS in the NTS contribute to the HVR or VAH in awake rats.

Topics: Acclimatization; Animals; Central Nervous System; Citrulline; Hypoxia; Male; NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I; Pulmonary Ventilation; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Reflex; Respiration; Solitary Nucleus; Thiourea; Ventilation; Wakefulness

Hypoxia inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) promotes transitory neuronal survival suggesting that additional mechanisms such as the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress might be involved in determining neuronal survival or death. Here, we examined the involvement of ER stress in hypoxia-induced neuronal death and analysed the relationship between ER stress and the HIF-1 pathways.. Cultures of rat cortical neurons were exposed to chemical hypoxia induced by 200 μM CoCl2 , and its effect on neuronal viability was assessed by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide assay and counting apoptotic nuclei. Protein levels were determined by Western blot analysis. RT-PCR was performed to analyse the content and the t1/2 of HIF-1α mRNA.. Chemical hypoxia induced neuronal apoptosis in a time-dependent manner and activated the ER stress PRK-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase (PERK)-dependent pathway. At later stages, chemical hypoxia increased the expression of the C/EBP homologous protein (CHOP) and caspase 12 activity. CoCl2 reduced HIF-1α mRNA t1/2 leading to a decrease in HIF-1α mRNA and protein content, simultaneously activating the ER stress PERK-dependent pathway. Salubrinal, a selective inhibitor of phospho-eIF2α phosphatase, protected neurons from chemical hypoxia by reducing CHOP levels and caspase 12 activity, and increasing the t1/2 of HIF-1α mRNA and the levels of HIF-1α protein. Knocking down HIF-1α blocked the neuroprotective effects of salubrinal.. Neuronal apoptosis induced by chemical hypoxia is a process regulated by HIF-1α stabilization early on and by ER stress activation at later stages. Our data also suggested that HIF-1α levels were regulated by ER stress.

Topics: Animals; Apoptosis; Caspase 12; Cell Survival; Cells, Cultured; Cinnamates; Cobalt; eIF-2 Kinase; Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress; Eukaryotic Initiation Factor-2; Gene Knockdown Techniques; Hypoxia; Hypoxia-Inducible Factor 1, alpha Subunit; Neurons; Rats; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; RNA, Messenger; Signal Transduction; Thiourea; Transcription Factor CHOP

Obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) in children is associated with multiple system morbidities. Cognitive dysfunction as a result of central nervous system complication has been reported in children with OSAHS. However, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood. Endoplasmic reticulum stress (ERS)-related apoptosis plays an important role in various diseases of the central nervous system, but very little is known about the role of ERS in mediating pathophysiological reactions to cognitive dysfunction in OSAHS. Chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) exposures, modeling OSAHS, across 2 and 4weeks in growing rats made more reference memory errors, working memory errors and total memory errors in the 8-Arm radial maze task, increased significantly TUNEL positive cells, upregulated the unfolded protein response in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex as evidenced by increased phosphorylation of PKR-like endoplasmic reticulum kinase, inositol-requiring enzyme l and some downstream products. A selective inhibitor of eukaryotic initiation factor-2a dephosphorylation, salubrinal, prevented C/EBP-homologous protein activation in the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex throughout hypoxia/reoxygenation exposure. Our findings suggest that ERS mediated cell apoptosis may be one of the underlying mechanisms of cognitive dysfunction in OSAHS children. Further, a specific ERS inhibitor Salubrinal should be tested for neuroprotection against CIH-induced injury.

Topics: Age Factors; Aging; Animals; Blood Pressure; Brain Injuries; Cinnamates; Disease Models, Animal; Endoplasmic Reticulum; Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress; Hippocampus; Hypoxia; Learning Disabilities; Male; Maze Learning; Oligopeptides; Prefrontal Cortex; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Thiourea; Time Factors; Transcription Factors

Motor nerve terminals are especially sensitive to an ischemia/reperfusion stress. We applied an in vitro model of this stress, oxygen/glucose deprivation (OGD), to mouse neuromuscular preparations to investigate how Ca(2+) contributes to stress-induced motor terminal damage. Measurements using an ionophoretically-injected fluorescent [Ca(2+)] indicator demonstrated an increase in intra-terminal [Ca(2+)] following OGD onset. When OGD was terminated within 20-30min of the increase in resting [Ca(2+)], these changes were sometimes reversible; in other cases [Ca(2+)] remained high and the terminal degenerated. Endplate innervation was assessed morphometrically following 22min OGD and 120min reoxygenation (32.5°C). Stress-induced motor terminal degeneration was Ca(2+)-dependent. Median post-stress endplate occupancy was only 26% when the bath contained the normal 1.8mM Ca(2+), but increased to 81% when Ca(2+) was absent. Removal of Ca(2+) only during OGD was more protective than removal of Ca(2+) only during reoxygenation. Post-stress endplate occupancy was partially preserved by pharmacological inhibition of various routes of Ca(2+) entry into motor terminals, including voltage-dependent Ca(2+) channels (ω-agatoxin-IVA, nimodipine) and the plasma membrane Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchanger (KB-R7943). Inhibition of a Ca(2+)-dependent protease with calpain inhibitor VI was also protective. These results suggest that most of the OGD-induced motor terminal damage is Ca(2+)-dependent, and that inhibition of Ca(2+) entry or Ca(2+)-dependent proteolysis can reduce this damage. There was no significant difference between the response of wild-type and presymptomatic superoxide dismutase 1 G93A mutant terminals to OGD, or in their response to the protective effect of the tested drugs.

Topics: Animals; Bacterial Proteins; Bungarotoxins; Calcium; Disease Models, Animal; Egtazic Acid; Enzyme Inhibitors; Glucose; Humans; Hypoxia; In Vitro Techniques; Luminescent Proteins; Membrane Potential, Mitochondrial; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Mice, Transgenic; Motor Endplate; Motor Neuron Disease; Motor Neurons; Neuromuscular Junction; Protein Binding; Superoxide Dismutase; Thiourea; Time Factors

Closure of the ductus arteriosus (DA) after birth, essential for postnatal adaptation, is initiated by the transition from hypoxia to normoxia. The current study investigated how hypoxia affects the level of cytosolic calcium ([Ca(2+)](i)) in fetal lamb DA smooth muscle cells (DASMCs) and the role of calcium pumps in this process. The [Ca(2+)](i) variation in response to acute hypoxia was determined spectrofluorometrically with fura-3-AM in cultured fetal DASMCs. Interventions using chemicals or solutions including thapsigargin, vanadate, KB-R7943, alkaline PH9.0 solution, or Na(+)-free medium were administered when samples were exposed to acute hypoxia. The results show that [Ca(2+)](i) decreased dramatically under acute hypoxia. This decrease was not attenuated completely by an inhibitor of sarcoplasmic/endoplasmic reticulum Ca(2+) adenosine triphosphatase (ATPase) (SERCA), a blocker of plasma membrane Ca(2+) ATPase (PMCA), or an inhibitor and activator of the reserve mode of the Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchanger (NCX). In contrast, KT-R9743, an inhibitor of the forward mode of NCX at a high concentration (30 microm), greatly diminished the hypoxia-induced [Ca(2+)](i) decrease in fetal DASMCs. These results suggest that a hypoxia-induced Ca(2+) decrease in fetal DASMCs results from cytosolic Ca(2+) efflux mediated primarily by the forward mode of NCX.

Topics: Analysis of Variance; Animals; Calcium; Cells, Cultured; Cytosol; Ductus Arteriosus; Fetus; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Hypoxia; Microscopy, Confocal; Myocytes, Smooth Muscle; Sheep; Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; Thapsigargin; Thiourea; Vanadates

We assessed ventilatory patterns and ventilatory responses to hypoxia (HVR) in high-altitude (HA) plateau pikas, repetitively exposed to hypoxic burrows, and control rats. We evaluated the role of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) and dopamine by using S-methyl-l-thiocitrulline (SMTC) inhibitor and haloperidol antagonist, respectively. Ventilation (Vi) was measured using a whole body plethysmograph in conscious pikas (n = 9) and low-altitude (LA) rats (n = 7) at different Pi(O(2)) (56, 80, 111, 150, and 186 mmHg) and in HA acclimatized rats (n = 9, 8 days at 4,600 m) at two different Pi(O(2)) (56 and 80 mmHg). The effects of NaCl, SMTC, and haloperidol on ventilatory patterns were assessed in pikas at Pi(O(2)) = 56 and 80 mmHg. We observed a main species effect with larger Vi, tidal volume (VT), inspiratory time/total time (T(i)/T(tot)), and a lower expiratory time in pikas than in LA rats. Pikas had also a larger VT and lower respiratory frequency compared with HA rats in hypoxia. HVR of pikas and rats were not statistically different. In pikas, SMTC induced a significant increase in Vi and VT for a Pi(O(2)) of 56 mmHg, but had no effect for a PiO(2) of 80 mmHg, i.e., the living altitude of pikas. In pikas, haloperidol injection had no effect on any ventilatory parameter. Long-term ventilatory adaptation in pikas is mainly due to an improvement in respiratory pattern (VT and T(i)/T(tot)) with no significant improvement in HVR. The sensitivity to severe acute hypoxia in pikas seems to be regulated by a peripheral nNOS mechanism.

Topics: Acclimatization; Animals; Citrulline; Dopamine; Dopamine Antagonists; Enzyme Inhibitors; Exhalation; Haloperidol; Hypoxia; Inhalation; Lagomorpha; Male; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I; Pulmonary Ventilation; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Respiratory Mechanics; Species Specificity; Thiourea; Tidal Volume; Time Factors

An enhancement of peripheral chemoreflex sensitivity contributes to sympathetic hyperactivity in chronic heart failure (CHF) rabbits. The enhanced chemoreflex function in CHF involves augmented carotid body (CB) chemoreceptor activity via upregulation of the angiotensin II (ANG II) type 1 (AT(1))-receptor pathway and downregulation of the neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS)-nitric oxide (NO) pathway in the CB. Here we investigated whether exercise training (EXT) normalizes the enhanced peripheral chemoreflex function in CHF rabbits and possible mechanisms mediating this effect. EXT partially, but not fully, normalized the exaggerated baseline renal sympathetic nerve activity (RSNA) and the response of RSNA to hypoxia in CHF rabbits. EXT also decreased the baseline CB nerve single-fiber discharge (4.9 +/- 0.4 vs. 7.7 +/- 0.4 imp/s at Po(2) = 103 +/- 2.3 Torr) and the response to hypoxia (20.6 +/- 1.1 vs. 36.3 +/- 1.3 imp/s at Po(2) = 41 +/- 2.2 Torr) from CB chemoreceptors in CHF rabbits, which could be reversed by treatment of the CB with ANG II or a nNOS inhibitor. Our results also showed that NO concentration and protein expression of nNOS were increased in the CBs from EXT + CHF rabbits, compared with that in CHF rabbits. On the other hand, elevated ANG II concentration and AT(1)-receptor overexpression of the CBs in CHF state were blunted by EXT. These results indicate that EXT normalizes the CB chemoreflex in CHF by preventing an increase in afferent CB chemoreceptor activity. EXT reverses the alterations in the nNOS-NO and ANG II-AT(1)-receptor pathways in the CB responsible for chemoreceptor sensitization in CHF.

Topics: Action Potentials; Angiotensin II; Animals; Cardiac Pacing, Artificial; Carotid Body; Chronic Disease; Citrulline; Disease Models, Animal; Enzyme Inhibitors; Exercise Therapy; Heart Failure; Hemodynamics; Hypoxia; Kidney; Male; Nitric Oxide; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I; Physical Exertion; Rabbits; Receptor, Angiotensin, Type 1; Reflex; Signal Transduction; Sympathetic Nervous System; Thiourea

Hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV) is a well-known phenomenon to temporarily offset a ventilation/perfusion mismatch. Sustained HPV may lead to pulmonary hypertension. In this protocol, we studied the relationships between the HPV response and oxygen radical release after hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) challenge in an isolated perfused lung model.. We used an in situ isolated rat lung preparation. Two hypoxic challenges (5% CO2-95% N2) were administered for 10 minutes each with administration of antioxidants of superoxide dismutase (SOD; 2 mg/kg), catalase (20,000 IU/kg), dimethylthiourea (DMTU; 100 mg/kg), dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO; 1 mL/kg), or allopurinol (30 mg/kg) between 2 challenges. We measured pulmonary arterial pressure changes before, during, and after H/R challenge. We measured blood concentration changes in hydroxyl radicals and nitric oxide (NO) before and after H/R. mRNA expressions of SOD and catalase in lung tissue were measured after the experiments.. Hypoxia induced pulmonary vasoconstriction by increasing pulmonary arterial pressure and consecutive hypoxic challenges did not show tachyphylaxis. Blood concentrations of hydroxyl radicals and NO increased significantly after H/R challenges. mRNA expressions of SOD and catalase increased significantly, however, neither SOD nor catalase showed attenuated effects on HPV responses. Small molecules of DMTU, DMSO, and allopurinol attenuated the HPV responses.. H/R induced increases in the expressions of SOD and catalase in lung tissues. DMTU, DMSO, and allopurinol antioxidants attenuated the HPV responses by reducing the oxygen radical release.

Topics: Allopurinol; Animals; Antioxidants; Catalase; Dimethyl Sulfoxide; Free Radical Scavengers; Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; Hypoxia; Lung; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Pulmonary Artery; Pulmonary Circulation; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Reperfusion Injury; RNA, Messenger; Superoxide Dismutase; Thiourea; Vasoconstriction

Mammalian cells require a constant O2 supply to produce adequate energy, and sustained hypoxia can kill cells. Mammals therefore have evolved sophisticated mechanisms to allow their cells to adapt to hypoxia. In this study, we investigated the role of TRP channels and the Na+-Ca2+ exchanger (NCX) in mediating hypoxia-induced [Ca2+]i elevation in a model of the O2-sensing rat pheochromocytoma (PC12) cell line by using Ca2+ imaging and molecular biological approaches. Non-selective cation channels, such as TRPC1, 3 and 6, were found to be functionally expressed in PC12 cells. They mediated Ca2+ entry when cells were exposed to acute hypoxia (PO2 of 15 mmHg), in addition to Ca2+ entry via VGCCs. Blockage of TRPCs by 2APB and SKF96365 could significantly reduce hypoxia-mediated [Ca2+]i elevation. Suramin and U73122 attenuated the hypoxia-induced [Ca2+]i elevation, implying the involvement of the G-protein and PLC pathways in the hypoxic response. In addition to TRPCs and VGCCs, NCX also contributed to the hypoxia-induced [Ca2+]i elevation, and blockade of NCX by KBR7943 could significantly decrease the hypoxia-induced [Ca2+]i elevation. Our results suggest that the activation of TRP by hypoxia could lead to NCX reversal; furthermore, membrane depolarization and TRPCs may play a primary role in mediating the hypoxic response in PC12 cells.

Topics: Animals; Boron Compounds; Calcium; Calcium Channel Blockers; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Gene Expression Regulation; Hypoxia; Imidazoles; Models, Biological; PC12 Cells; Potassium Chloride; Rats; Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; Suramin; Thiourea; TRPC Cation Channels; Verapamil

Obstructive sleep apnea is associated with neural injury and dysfunction. Hypoxia/reoxygenation exposures, modeling sleep apnea, injure select populations of neurons, including hypoglossal motoneurons. The mechanisms underlying this motoneuron injury are not understood. We hypothesize that endoplasmic reticulum injury contributes to motoneuron demise. Hypoxia/reoxygenation exposures across 8 weeks in adult mice upregulated the unfolded protein response as evidenced by increased phosphorylation of PERK [PKR-like endoplasmic reticulum (ER) kinase] in facial and hypoglossal motoneurons and persistent upregulation of CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein-homologous protein (CHOP)/growth arrest and DNA damage-inducible protein (GADD153) with nuclear translocation. Long-term hypoxia/reoxygenation also resulted in cleavage and nuclear translocation of caspase-7 and caspase-3 in hypoglossal and facial motoneurons. In contrast, occulomotor and trigeminal motoneurons showed persistent phosphorylation of eIF-2a across hypoxia/reoxygenation, without activations of CHOP/GADD153 or either caspase. Ultrastructural analysis of rough ER in hypoglossal motoneurons revealed hypoxia/reoxygenation-induced luminal swelling and ribosomal detachment. Protection of eIF-2alpha phosphorylation with systemically administered salubrinal throughout hypoxia/reoxygenation exposure prevented CHOP/GADD153 activation in susceptible motoneurons. Collectively, this work provides evidence that long-term exposure to hypoxia/reoxygenation events, modeling sleep apnea, results in significant endoplasmic reticulum injury in select upper airway motoneurons. Augmentation of eIF-2a phosphorylation minimizes motoneuronal injury in this model. It is anticipated that obstructive sleep apnea results in endoplasmic reticulum injury involving motoneurons, whereas a critical balance of phosphorylated eIF-2a should minimize motoneuronal injury in obstructive sleep apnea.

Topics: Animals; Brain Stem; Caspases; Choline O-Acetyltransferase; Cinnamates; Disease Models, Animal; eIF-2 Kinase; Endoplasmic Reticulum; Eukaryotic Initiation Factor-2; Gene Expression Regulation; Hypoxia; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; Motor Neurons; Oxidative Stress; Phosphorylation; Sleep Apnea Syndromes; Thiourea; Transcription Factor CHOP

We analyzed the role of the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCX) in endothelin-1-aggravated hypoxia/reoxygenation-induced injury in renal epithelial LLC-PK1 cells. KB-R7943, a selective NCX inhibitor, suppressed hypoxia/reoxygenation-induced cell damage, whereas overexpression of NCX1 into cells enhanced it. Endothelin-1 significantly aggravated hypoxia/reoxygenation-induced injury in parental and NCX1-overexpressing LLC-PK1 cells. Such aggravation by endothelin-1 was not observed in cells overexpressing a deregulated NCX1 mutant, which displays no protein kinase C-dependent activation. These results suggest that Ca2+ overload via NCX plays a critical role in hypoxia/reoxygenation-induced renal tubular injury, and that endothelin-1 aggravates the cell damage through the activation of NCX.

Topics: Animals; Endothelin-1; Epithelial Cells; Hypoxia; Kidney; LLC-PK1 Cells; Oxygen; Swine; Thiourea

The objective of our study was to assess the role of neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) in the ventilatory acclimatization to hypoxia. We measured the ventilation in acclimatized Bl6/CBA mice breathing 21% and 8% oxygen, used a nNOS inhibitor, and assessed the expression of N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA) glutamate receptor and nNOS (mRNA and protein). Two groups of Bl6/CBA mice (n = 60) were exposed during 2 wk either to hypoxia [barometric pressure (PB) = 420 mmHg] or normoxia (PB = 760 mmHg). At the end of exposure the medulla was removed to measure the concentration of nitric oxide (NO) metabolites, the expression of NMDA-NR1 receptor, and nNOS by real-time RT-PCR and Western blot. We also measured the ventilatory response [fraction of inspired O(2) (Fi(O(2))) = 0.21 and 0.08] before and after S-methyl-l-thiocitrulline treatment (SMTC, nNOS inhibitor, 10 mg/kg ip). Chronic hypoxia caused an increase in ventilation that was reduced after SMTC treatment mainly through a decrease in tidal volume (Vt) in normoxia and in acute hypoxia. However, the difference observed in the magnitude of acute hypoxic ventilatory response [minute ventilation (Ve) 8% - Ve 21%] in acclimatized mice was not different. Acclimatization to hypoxia induced a rise in NMDA receptor as well as in nNOS and NO production. In conclusion, our study provides evidence that activation of nNOS is involved in the ventilatory acclimatization to hypoxia in mice but not in the hypoxic ventilatory response (HVR) while the increased expression of NMDA receptor expression in the medulla of chronically hypoxic mice plays a role in acute HVR. These results are therefore consistent with central nervous system plasticity, partially involved in ventilatory acclimatization to hypoxia through nNOS.

Topics: Acclimatization; Animals; Blotting, Western; Brain Stem; Chronic Disease; Citrulline; Disease Models, Animal; Enzyme Inhibitors; Hypoxia; Male; Mice; Mice, Inbred CBA; Nitric Oxide; Nitric Oxide Synthase Type I; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Pulmonary Ventilation; Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; Research Design; RNA, Messenger; Thiourea; Tidal Volume; Up-Regulation

The present study was undertaken to investigate the role of nitric oxide (NO) pathway in the behavioral thermoregulation of newborn rats in cold and hypoxia. We predicted that injection of L-NAME (non-selective NO synthase (NOS) inhibitor) and SMTC (neuronal NOS (nNOS) inhibitor) would restore the huddling behavior and eliminate the reduction of Tb caused by hypoxia. Experiments were performed on Wistar rat pups of 7-9 days old. We measured Tb and analyzed the huddling behavior by means of the calculation of the total surface area occupied by 5 pups and the number of single pups grouped in the center of a chamber at 20 degrees C, before and after L-NAME, SMTC or their respective vehicles (D-NAME and saline) s.c. injections. Subsequently, the pups were exposed to hypoxia (10% O(2)) during 30 min, whereas control animals were kept under normoxia. The experiments were monitored by a digital camera. All animals were hypothermic when exposed to 20 degrees C. There was no significant difference in Tb, total area and number of single pups in normoxia after treatments. During hypoxia, the drop in Tb was higher in control groups, and this effect was attenuated by L-NAME and SMTC injections. Hypoxia increased the area occupied by the pups in saline, D-NAME and L-NAME groups, while SMTC attenuated this response. The data indicate that NO pathway is involved in the inhibition of huddling behavior and in the reduction of Tb caused by hypoxia, but plays no role during normoxia. Furthermore, NO seems to arise from the nNOS isoform.

Topics: Animals; Animals, Newborn; Behavior, Animal; Body Temperature; Body Temperature Regulation; Citrulline; Cold Temperature; Enzyme Inhibitors; Hypoxia; NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester; Nitric Oxide Synthase; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Thiourea; Time Factors

Antiedematous activity of new thiazolo[5,4-b]indole derivatives containing a fragment of isothiourea and characterized by higher antihypoxic activity compared to known antihypoxants was studied on a model of toxic edema of the lungs in mice. Compounds exhibiting high activity on two models of hypoxia (hypobaric and hemic) better protected from lung edema than compounds active only in hypobaric hypoxia.

Topics: Animals; Hypoxia; Indoles; Kinetics; Lung; Male; Mice; Models, Chemical; Phosgene; Pulmonary Edema; Rats; Thiazoles; Thiourea

Intracellular ATP supply and ion homeostasis determine neuronal survival and degeneration after ischemic stroke. The present study provides a systematic investigation in organotypic hippocampal slice cultures of the influence of experimental ischemia, induced by oxygen-glucose-deprivation (OGD). The pathways controlling intracellular Na(+) and Ca(2+) concentration ([Na(+)](i) and [Ca(2+)](i)) and their inhibition were correlated with delayed cell death or protection. OGD induced a marked decrease in the ATP level and a transient elevation of [Ca(2+)](i) and [Na(+)](i) in cell soma of pyramidal neurons. ATP level, [Na(+)](i) and [Ca(2+)](i) rapidly recovered after reintroduction of oxygen and glucose. Pharmacological analysis showed that the OGD-induced [Ca(2+)](i) elevation in neuronal cell soma resulted from activation of both N-methyl-d-aspartate (NMDA)-glutamate receptors and Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchangers, while the abnormal [Na(+)](i) elevation during OGD was due to Na(+) influx through voltage-dependent Na(+) channels. In hippocampal slices, cellular degeneration occurring 24 h after OGD, selectively affected the pyramidal cell population through apoptotic and non-apoptotic cell death. OGD-induced cell loss was mediated by activation of ionotropic glutamate receptors, voltage-dependent Na(+) channels, and both plasma membrane and mitochondrial Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchangers. Thus, we show that neuroprotection induced by blockade of NMDA receptors and plasma membrane Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchangers is mediated by reduction of Ca(2+) entry into neuronal soma, whereas neuroprotection induced by blockade of AMPA/kainate receptors and mitochondrial Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchangers might result from reduced Na(+) entry at dendrites level.

Topics: Adenosine Triphosphate; Animals; Animals, Newborn; Boron Compounds; Calcium; Calcium Channel Blockers; Cell Death; Clonazepam; Dantrolene; Dizocilpine Maleate; Enzyme Inhibitors; Excitatory Amino Acid Antagonists; Fura-2; Glucose; Hippocampus; Hypoxia; In Situ Nick-End Labeling; Indoles; Intracellular Space; Ion Exchange; Lidocaine; Mibefradil; Nimodipine; Organ Culture Techniques; Quinoxalines; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Sodium; Sodium Channel Blockers; Thiazepines; Thiourea; Time Factors

In the heart, reperfusion following an ischaemic episode can result in a marked increase in [Ca2+]i and cause myocyte dysfunction and death. Although the Na(+)-Ca2+ exchanger has been implicated in this response, the ionic mechanisms that are responsible have not been identified. In this study, the hypothesis that the diastolic membrane potential can influence Na(+)-Ca2+ exchange and Ca2+ homeostasis during chemically induced hypoxia-reoxygenation has been tested using right ventricular myocytes isolated from adult rat hearts. Superfusion with selected [K+]o of 0.5, 2.5, 5, 7, 10 and 15 mM yielded the following resting membrane potentials: -27.6+/-1.63 mV, -102.2+/-1.89, -86.5+/-1.03, -80.1+/-1.25, -73.6+/-1.02 and -66.4+/-1.03, respectively. In a second set of experiments myocytes were subjected to chemically induced hypoxia-reoxygenation at these different [K+]o, while [Ca2+]i was monitored using fura-2. These results demonstrated that after chemically induced hypoxia-reoxygenation had caused a marked increase in [Ca2+]i, hyperpolarization of myocytes with 2.5 mM [K+]o significantly reduced [Ca2+]i (7.5+/-0.32 vs. 16.9+/-0.55%); while depolarization (with either 0.5 or 15 mM [K+]o) significantly increased [Ca2+]i (31.8+/-3.21 and 20.8+/-0.36 vs. 16.9+/-0.55%, respectively). As expected, at depolarized membrane potentials myocyte hypercontracture and death increased in parallel with Ca2+ overload. The involvement of the Na(+)-Ca2+ exchanger in Ca2+ homeostasis was evaluated using the Na(+)-Ca2+ exchanger inhibitor KB-R7943. During reoxygenation KB-R7943 (5 microM) almost completely prevented the increase in [Ca2+]i both in control conditions (in 5 mM [K+]o: 2.2+/-0.40 vs. 10.8+/-0.14%) and in depolarized myocytes (in 15 mM [K+]o: -2.1+/-0.51 vs. 11.3+/-0.05%). These findings demonstrate that the resting membrane potential of ventricular myocytes is a critical determinant of [Ca2+]i during hypoxia-reoxygenation. This appears to be due mainly to an effect of diastolic membrane potential on the Na(+)-Ca2+ exchanger, since at depolarized potentials this exchanger mechanism operates in the reverse mode, causing a significant Ca2+ influx.

Topics: Animals; Calcium; Calcium Channels, L-Type; Calcium Signaling; Electric Stimulation; Enzyme Inhibitors; Heart Arrest, Induced; Heart Ventricles; Hypoxia; In Vitro Techniques; Membrane Potentials; Models, Neurological; Models, Statistical; Muscle Cells; Oxygen Consumption; Rats; Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; Thiourea; Ventricular Function

The effects of a novel agent that is reported to selectively block Ca2+ influx by Na+/Ca2+ exchange (NCX), KB-R7943, on the reoxygenation-induced arrhythmias and the recovery of developed tension after reoxygenation, were investigated in guinea pig papillary muscles. KB-R7943 dose-dependently suppressed the contracture tension during low-sodium (21.9 mM) perfusion (23+/-8% of steady-state developed tension at 10 microM vs. 56+/-11% in control; n = 6, p<0.05), but did not change action potential and contractile parameters. During the reoxygenation period after 60-min substrate-free hypoxia, KB-R7943 (10 microM) significantly decreased the incidence of arrhythmias (44 vs. 100% in control; n = 9, p <0.05) and shortened the duration of arrhythmias (16+/-11 vs. 72+/-14 s; p<0.01). KB-R7943 (10 microM) significantly enhanced the recovery of developed tension after reoxygenation (83+/-4 vs. 69+/-3% in control; p<0.05). We conclude that KB-R7943 (10 microM) selectively inhibits the reverse mode of NCX, and that it attenuates reoxygenation-induced arrhythmic activity and prevents contractile dysfunction in guinea pig papillary muscles. These results suggest that Ca2+ influx by NCX may play a key role in reoxygenation injury.

Topics: Action Potentials; Animals; Arrhythmias, Cardiac; Calcium; Electrophysiology; Guinea Pigs; Heart; Hypoxia; In Vitro Techniques; Male; Myocardial Contraction; Myocardium; Oxygen Consumption; Papillary Muscles; Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; Thiourea

A prominent feature of cerebral ischemia is the excessive intracellular accumulation of both Na(+) and Ca(2+), which results in subsequent cell death. A large number of studies have focused on pathways involved in the increase of the intracellular Ca(2+) concentration [Ca(2+)](i), whereas the elevation of intracellular Na(+) has received less attention. In the present study we investigated the effects of inhibitors of different Na(+) channels and of the Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchanger, which couples the Na(+) to the Ca(2+) gradient, on ischemic damage in organotypic hippocampal slice cultures. The synaptically evoked population spike in the CA1 region was taken as a functional measure of neuronal integrity. Neuronal cell death was assessed by propidium iodide staining. The Na(+) channel blocker tetrodotoxin, and the NMDA receptor blocker MK 801, but not the AMPA/kainate receptor blocker NBQX prevented ischemic cell death. The novel Na(+)/Ca(2+) exchange inhibitor 2-[2-[4-(4-nitrobenzyloxy)phenyl]ethyl]isothiourea methanesulfonate (KB-R7943), which preferentially acts on the reverse mode of the exchanger, leading to Ca(2+) accumulation, also reduced neuronal damage. At higher concentrations, KB-R7943 also inhibits Ca(2+) extrusion by the forward mode of the exchanger and exaggerates neuronal cell death. Neuroprotection by KB-R7943 may be due to reducing the [Ca(2+)](i) increase caused by the exchanger.

Topics: Animals; Brain Ischemia; Cell Death; Culture Techniques; Dizocilpine Maleate; Electrophysiology; Hippocampus; Homeostasis; Hypoglycemia; Hypoxia; Neurons; Quinoxalines; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Receptors, AMPA; Receptors, Kainic Acid; Receptors, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate; Sodium; Sodium Channel Blockers; Sodium Channels; Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; Tetrodotoxin; Thiourea

Spinal cord injury is a devastating condition in which most of the clinical disability results from dysfunction of white matter tracts. Excessive cellular Ca(2+) accumulation is a common phenomenon after anoxia/ischemia or mechanical trauma to white matter, leading to irreversible injury because of overactivation of multiple Ca(2+)-dependent biochemical pathways. In the present study, we examined the role of Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchange, a ubiquitous Ca(2+) transport mechanism, in anoxic and traumatic injury to rat spinal dorsal columns in vitro. Excised tissue was maintained in a recording chamber at 37 degrees C and injured by exposure to an anoxic atmosphere for 60 min or locally compressed with a force of 2 g for 15 s. Mean compound action potential amplitude recovered to approximately 25% of control after anoxia and to approximately 30% after trauma. Inhibitors of Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchange (50 microM bepridil or 10 microM KB-R7943) improved functional recovery to approximately 60% after anoxia and approximately 70% after traumatic compression. These inhibitors also prevented the increase in calpain-mediated spectrin breakdown products induced by anoxia. We conclude that, at physiological temperature, reverse Na(+)-Ca(2+) exchange plays an important role in cellular Ca(2+) overload and irreversible damage after anoxic and traumatic injury to dorsal column white matter tracts.

Topics: Animals; Bepridil; Blotting, Western; Calcium Channel Blockers; Hypoxia; In Vitro Techniques; Male; Nerve Fibers; Rats; Rats, Long-Evans; Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; Spinal Cord; Spinal Cord Injuries; Temperature; Thiourea

To assess the neuroprotective potential of melatonin in apoptotic neuronal cell death, we investigated the efficacy of melatonin in serum-free primary neuronal cultures of rat cortex by using three different models of caspase-dependent apoptotic, excitotoxin-independent neurodegeneration and compared it to that in necrotic neuronal damage. Neuronal apoptosis was induced by either staurosporine or the neurotoxin ethylcholine aziridinium (AF64A) with a delayed occurrence of apoptotic cell death (within 72 h). The apoptotic component of oxygen-glucose deprivation (OGD) unmasked by glutamate antagonists served as a third model. As a model for necrotic cell death, OGD was applied. Neuronal injury was quantified by LDH release and loss of metabolic activity. Although melatonin (0.5 mM) partly protected cortical neurons from OGD-induced necrosis, as measured by a significant reduction in LDH release, it was not effective in all three models of apoptotic cell death. In contrast, exaggeration of neuronal damage by melatonin was observed in native cultures as well as after induction of apoptosis. The present data suggest that the neuroprotectiveness of melatonin strongly depends on the model of neuronal cell death applied. As demonstrated in three different models of neuronal apoptosis, the progression of the apoptotic type of neuronal cell death cannot be withhold or is even exaggerated by melatonin, in contrast to its beneficial effect in the necrotic type of cell death.

Topics: Animals; Antioxidants; Apoptosis; Aziridines; Caspase Inhibitors; Caspases; Cell Survival; Cells, Cultured; Choline; Cyclic N-Oxides; Drug Interactions; Enzyme Inhibitors; Free Radical Scavengers; Free Radicals; Glucose; Hypoxia; Melatonin; Necrosis; Neurons; Nitrogen Oxides; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Staurosporine; Thiourea

The most important stimulus for the enhanced synthesis of erythropoietin (Epo) is a lowered O2 tension in the tissue. However, the mechanism by which an impaired O2 supply is transduced into appropriate Epo production is still not fully understood. Recently, studies in human hepatoma cells (line HepG2) indicate that reactive O2 species are involved in the signal transduction from the cellular O2 sensor to the Epo gene. To clarify the role of reactive O2 species in the regulation of Epo synthesis in the kidney, the principal Epo-producing organ in vivo, we investigated the influence of potent pro- and antioxidants on Epo production in isolated perfused rat kidneys. Under normoxic conditions, the iron chelator desferrioxamine and the antioxidant vitamin A increased renal Epo production, mimicking hypoxic induction. In contrast, supplementation of the perfusion medium of hypoxically perfused kidneys with the prooxidant compounds H2O2 or pyrogallol caused a significant reduction of Epo synthesis. The inhibition of Epo formation by reactive O2 species could be completely antagonized by desferrioxamine and the hydroxyl radical-(OH*)-scavenger tetramethylthiourea. Vitamin A also antagonized the H2O2-dependent inhibition of hypoxically induced Epo synthesis. Interestingly, the addition of the antioxidant vitamin A to hypoxically perfused kidneys also induced Epo production significantly. Our data strongly support the idea that reactive O2 species, especially H2O2, are part of the signaling chain of the cellular O2-sensing mechanism regulating the renal synthesis of Epo.

Topics: Animals; Antioxidants; Chelating Agents; Deferoxamine; Erythropoietin; Free Radical Scavengers; Hydrogen Peroxide; Hypoxia; In Vitro Techniques; Kidney; Male; Oxidants; Pyrogallol; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Reference Values; RNA, Messenger; Thiourea; Vitamin A

The novel inhibitor of the reverse mode of the Na+/Ca2+ exchanger (NCE) KB-R7943 (KB) was tested in isolated rat cardiomyocytes exposed to 80 min of simulated ischemia [substrate-free anoxia, extracellular pH (pHo) of 6.4] and 15 min of reoxygenation (pHo 7.4). At pHo 6.4, 20 micromol/l KB was required for complete inhibition of the reverse mode of NCE. Treatment with 20 micromol/l KB only during anoxia did not influence the onset of rigor contracture and intracellular pH (pHi) (monitored with 2', 7'-bis(2-carboxyethyl)-5(6)-carboxyfluorescein) but significantly reduced the cytosolic accumulation of Ca2+ (monitored with fura 2) and Na+ (monitored with sodium-binding benzofuran isophthalate). During reoxygenation, cardiomyocytes developed hypercontracture. This was significantly reduced by anoxic KB treatment. To investigate this protection against reoxygenation-induced injury in the whole heart, we exposed Langendorff-perfused rat hearts to 110 min of anoxia (pHo 6.4) and 50 min of reoxygenation (pHo 7.4). Application of 20 micromol/l KB during anoxia significantly reduced the reoxygenation-induced enzyme release. We conclude that KB offers significant protection of cardiomyocytes against Ca2+ and Na+ overload during anoxia and hypercontracture or enzyme release on reoxygenation.

Topics: Animals; Calcium; Cytosol; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Heart; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Hypoxia; In Vitro Techniques; Magnesium; Male; Myocardial Contraction; Myocardial Ischemia; Myocardial Reperfusion Injury; Osmolar Concentration; Oxygen; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Sodium-Calcium Exchanger; Thiourea; Time Factors

Because chronic hypoxia increases the production of oxygen radicals, we hypothesized that antioxidants attenuate chronic hypoxic pulmonary hypertension. In part 1, we examined the temporal progress in chronic hypoxic pulmonary hypertension in 46 Wistar rats exposed to hypoxia from 0-3 weeks. In part 2, we tested whether antioxidants attenuated chronic hypoxic pulmonary hypertension in 82 rats divided into 10 groups: control, fullerenol-1, U-83836E, dimethylthiourea-1, dimethylthiourea-2, hypoxia, hypoxia + fullerenol-1, hypoxia + U83836E, hypoxia + dimethylthiourea-1, and hypoxia + dimethylthiourea-2. Control animals breathed room air and were injected intraperitoneally with saline for 2 weeks. Fullerenol-1, U-83836E, and dimethylthiourea are antioxidants and were administered intraperitoneally for 2 weeks, except that dimethylthiourea was given either on days 3, 5, and 7 (dimethylthiourea-1), or on days 8, 10, and 12 (dimethylthiourea-2). Hypoxic animals were placed into a hypobaric chamber with a barometric pressure of 380 Torr for 2 weeks. Hypoxia + antioxidant groups were administered antioxidants during hypoxic exposure. We observed a gradual increase in pulmonary artery pressure, the weight ratio of right ventricle to left ventricle plus septum, and hematocrit during the 3 weeks of chronic hypoxia. These hypoxia-induced alterations were significantly attenuated by U-83836E and dimethylthiourea, but not by fullerenol-1. Neither the temporal alterations nor the antioxidant effects can be explained by the change in either tracheal neutral endopeptidase activity or the lung or plasma substance P level, perhaps because of the time lag in sampling. These results indicate that oxygen radicals play an important role in the development of chronic hypoxic pulmonary hypertension.

Topics: Animals; Antioxidants; Body Weight; Chronic Disease; Free Radicals; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Hypoxia; Male; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Substance P; Thiourea

Nitric oxide synthase (NOS) blockade was used to test the cardioventilatory responses to hypercapnia and hypoxia in freely behaving animals. Chronically instrumented adult Sprague-Dawley rats were studied before and after intravenous administration of either 100 mg/kg of NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (L-NAME), a nonspecific NOS blocker, or 10 mg/kg of S-methyl-L-thiocitrulline (SMTC), a selective neural NOS inhibitor. L-NAME injection induced sustained blood pressure (BP) elevation with transient tachycardia and increased minute ventilation (VE), which returned to baseline within minutes. SMTC elicited similar, although transient, BP increases; however, heart rate and VE decreased. L-NAME and SMTC did not modify overall steady-state hypercapnic responses. In control conditions, hypoxia induced early VE increases with further VE enhancements at 30 min. L-NAME increased the early VE response to 10% O2 but induced late VE reductions in hypoxia. SMTC did not change early VE responses but induced marked reductions in the later VE hypoxic responses. In control animals, hypoxia induced a significant heart rate increase. This increase was absent during the early response after SMTC and was followed in both L-NAME- and SMTC-treated animals by significant heart rate reductions to values below room air. Similarly, the sustained BP response to hypoxia in control animals was absent after administration of NOS inhibitors. These findings suggest that NOS activity exerts excitatory influences on respiration and cardiac chronotropy and sustained vasomotor tone during hypoxia. We speculate that NOS-mediated mechanisms may play an important role in hypoxia-induced ventilatory roll-off during wakefulness.

Topics: Animals; Blood Gas Analysis; Blood Pressure; Citrulline; Enzyme Inhibitors; Heart Rate; Hemodynamics; Hypercapnia; Hypoxia; Male; NG-Nitroarginine Methyl Ester; Nitric Oxide Synthase; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Respiratory Mechanics; Thiourea

Hypoxic injury in the isolated perfused rat kidney (IPRK) was monitored using 23Na-NMR in the presence or absence of 1.5 and 15 mM dimethylthiourea (DMTU) or 15 mM dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO) before and after inducing hypoxia. Hypoxia induced a prompt exponential increase in total renal 23Na+, renal vascular resistance, and sodium excretion and decreased inulin clearance and adenine nucleotides and reduced glutathione concentrations. Lipid peroxide metabolites were unaltered. The increase in 23Na+ was significantly reduced (P < 0.001) by both DMTU and DMSO although hypoxic perturbations of function and biochemical parameters were not. Posthypoxic increases in renal 23Na+ include approximately 10% from the intratubular compartment, but principally reflect the intracellular and interstitial compartments. The results demonstrate that 23Na-NMR is a sensitive indicator of hypoxic renal injury in intact kidney and suggest that DMTU and DMSO protect against hypoxic injury by a mechanism independent of free radical-binding.

Topics: Animals; Dimethyl Sulfoxide; Hypoxia; Kidney Diseases; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy; Male; Rats; Rats, Wistar; Sodium; Thiourea

The effect of dilazep and dimethyl thiourea (DMTU) on the hydrogen peroxide-derived injury of culture pulmonary artery epithelial cells (CPAEC) was assessed by colorimetric assay of MTT formazan (MTT formazan assay). When CPAEC were treated with hydrogen peroxide, neither cell lysis nor detachment of the cells from surface of the well was observed. However, the MTT formazan formation was decreased in a time and dose dependent manner. The decrease in the formation was significantly suppressed in the presence of dilazep (0.1 to 10 microM) or DMTU (0.01 to 0.3 microM). CPAEC treated with hydrogen peroxide in the same way enhanced an activation of prothrombin, and this enhancement was significantly inhibited in the presence of dilazep (1 to 3 microM). These data indicate that dilazep exerts a cytoprotective effect against challenges of intracellular oxidant produced by hydrogen peroxide and suppresses augmented procoagulant activity of injured cells.

Topics: Animals; Cattle; Cell Survival; Cells, Cultured; Colorimetry; Dilazep; Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; Endothelium, Vascular; Hydrogen Peroxide; Hypoxia; Prothrombin; Pulmonary Artery; Tetrazolium Salts; Thiazoles; Thiourea; Time Factors

Exposure of piglets to 68-72 h of hyperoxia has previously been shown to blunt hypoxic pulmonary vasoconstriction (HPV). We tested the hypothesis that the administration of a scavenger of toxic oxygen radicals during exposure to hyperoxia would preserve HPV in piglets. Newborn piglets were kept in FIO2 greater than 0.90 for 68-72 h and compared to control animals kept in room air. Randomly selected animals from both groups were given the O2 metabolite scavenger, dimethylthiourea (DMTU) (500 mg/kg followed by 250 mg/kg/d), resulting in plasma levels of 2-6 mM. Following the oxygen or room air (RA) exposure period, piglets had pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR) measured following a 20 min exposure to alveolar hypoxia (FIO2 = 0.12). Both groups of RA-exposed animals (DMTU and saline treatment) as well as the hyperoxia-exposed saline group had almost 2-fold increases in PVR during exposure to hypoxia (P less than 0.05). Contrary to expectations, the PVR in the hyperoxia-exposed DMTU group did not rise significantly during hypoxia and the use of DMTU did not restore HPV by increasing PVR to levels greater than the hyperoxia/saline group (P = 0.70). Therefore DMTU does not appear to prevent hyperoxia-induced blunting of HPV in piglets.

Topics: Animals; Animals, Newborn; Hemodynamics; Hypoxia; Lung; Oxygen; Pulmonary Wedge Pressure; Respiration; Swine; Thiourea; Vascular Resistance; Vasoconstriction

Ischemia, followed by reperfusion and restoration of oxygen to tissues, generates hydrogen peroxide which in turn generates injurious free radicals, particularly hydroxyl. Chronic hypoxia may also result in liberation of free radicals. In rats, chronic hypoxia causes pulmonary hypertension, associated with structural remodelling of pulmonary arteries, polycythemia, and vasoconstriction. We studied in rats the effects of dimethylthiourea (DMTU), a hydroxyl and hydrogen peroxide scavenger, on acute hypoxic vasoconstriction, and on the arterial structure and development of polycythemia after chronic hypoxia (FIO2 0.10 for 10 days, daily DMTU). DMTU did not affect acute vasoconstriction nor polycythemia. It significantly reduced muscularization of alveolar wall and alveolar duct arteries, medial thickening of alveolar wall and preacinar arteries, and right ventricular hypertrophy, suggesting reduction of pulmonary hypertension. However, DMTU caused marked growth retardation in both control and hypoxic rats, an effect not previously described. In other rats a similar degree of growth retardation due to reduced food intake failed to prevent the effects of hypoxia, suggesting that DMTU's effect is not through this mechanism. The results of this study support but do not confirm the hypothesis that free radicals may have a role in the pathogenesis of the arterial structural changes in the microcirculation contributing to chronic hypoxic pulmonary hypertension. However, in view of DMTU's effects on growth, definitive testing of the hypothesis will not be possible until other, less toxic, chronic hydroxyl scavengers become available.

Topics: Animals; Cardiomegaly; Chronic Disease; Free Radical Scavengers; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Hypoxia; Male; Polycythemia; Pulmonary Artery; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains; Thiourea; Vasoconstriction; Weight Gain

Early onset neonatal GBS infection is associated with pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary edema, and arterial hypoxemia. Although the mechanisms underlying these cardiopulmonary disturbances are not completely understood, multiple lines of evidence suggest that inflammatory mediators may be involved. This study examined the actions of dimethylthiourea (DMTU), a relatively selective scavenger of hydroxyl radical, on GBS-induced pulmonary hypertension, arterial hypoxemia, and pulmonary edema formation in young piglets. Relative to control animals, intravenous infusion of GBS (10(8) organisms/kg/min for 60 min) provoked sustained increases in pulmonary arterial pressure (Ppa: +88%) and total pulmonary resistance (TPR: 128%). GBS infusion also was associated with profound decreases in arterial PO2 (-58%). Pulmonary edema was present in GBS-treated animals as evidenced by an 8.4% increase in the lung wet-to-dry weight ratio. After pretreatment with DMTU (0.75 g/kg administered intravenously over 30 min), GBS increased Ppa by 33% and TPR by only 16%. Similarly, after DMTU pretreatment GBS decreased arterial oxygen tension by only 12%. DMTU also limited the GBS-induced increase in lung wet-to-dry weight ratio to 2.6%. These findings demonstrate that DMTU attenuates GBS-induced pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary edema, and arterial hypoxemia and suggest that hydroxyl radicals play an important role in these cardiopulmonary disturbances.

Topics: Animals; Free Radicals; Hydroxides; Hydroxyl Radical; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Hypoxia; Pulmonary Edema; Streptococcal Infections; Streptococcus agalactiae; Swine; Thiourea

A study was made of the effects of isothiobarbamine and guthimine (10 and 50 mg/kg, respectively) on the content of cAMP and cGMP in the brain cortex (BC) and hippocamp under normal conditions and hypoxia. Isothiobarbamine did not change the content of both cyclic nucleotides under normoxia, whereas under hypoxia it reduced the level of the cyclic nucleotides in the BC and raised it in the hippocamp. Guthimine increased their content in the BC and did not change it in the hippocamp under normoxia, whereas under hypoxia it increased the cAMP content in the hippocamp and did not change it in the BC. The cGMP content descended in both the structures under study.

Topics: Animals; Brain; Cerebral Cortex; Cyclic AMP; Cyclic GMP; Drug Evaluation, Preclinical; Guanylthiourea; Hippocampus; Hypoxia; Male; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains; Thiopental; Thiourea

Topics: Acute Disease; Adolescent; Antidotes; Critical Care; Female; Guanylthiourea; Humans; Hypoxia; Insecticides; Malathion; Male; Middle Aged; Thiourea; Trichlorfon

We investigated the effects of lung injury due to alpha-naphthylthiourea (ANTU) on pulmonary vascular reactivity. Rats were treated with ANTU (10 mg/kg ip) or the vehicle Tween 80. Four hours later, lungs from ANTU-treated rats had increased wet-to-dry weight ratios, bronchial lavage protein concentrations, and perivascular edema. To test vascular reactivity, lungs were isolated and perfused with blood at constant flow rate, while mean pulmonary arterial pressure was monitored. ANTU-treated lungs vasoconstricted earlier than Tween-treated lungs in response to severe airway hypoxia (fractional inspired O2 0%). ANTU-treated lungs vasoconstricted in response to 10% O2, while Tween-treated lungs failed to respond to 10% O2, indicating that the threshold for hypoxic vasoconstriction was decreased by ANTU. ANTU also decreased the threshold for and increased the magnitude of angiotensin II pressor responses, indicating that the increased vasoreactivity was not specific for hypoxia. Addition of meclofenamate to perfusates increased the rate and magnitude of responses to 0% O2 in Tween-treated lungs, but did not change the responses of ANTU-treated lungs. Light microscopy of ANTU-treated lungs showed no pulmonary arterial obstruction, and electron microscopy revealed mild capillary endothelial cell injury. We conclude that enhanced pulmonary vascular reactivity accompanies the increased-permeability pulmonary edema caused by ANTU. A similar increase in vasoreactivity might contribute to pulmonary hypertension observed in patients with the adult respiratory distress syndrome.

Topics: Angiotensin II; Animals; Blood Vessels; Hypoxia; Lung; Male; Meclofenamic Acid; Oxygen; Polysorbates; Pulmonary Circulation; Pulmonary Edema; Rats; Rats, Inbred Strains; Thiourea; Time Factors; Vasoconstriction

Topics: Animals; Hypoxia; Isothiuronium; Rats; Succinates; Thiourea

Topics: Animals; Blood Pressure; Diphenhydramine; Dogs; Female; Femoral Artery; Hypoxia; Male; Metiamide; Microspheres; Pulmonary Alveoli; Pulmonary Artery; Pulmonary Circulation; Radionuclide Imaging; Thiourea

Topics: Chromosomes; Hypoxia; Mitosis; Oxygen; Plants; Radiation Effects; Radiation-Protective Agents; Temperature; Thiourea

Topics: Animals; Aorta, Abdominal; Bacterial Infections; Constriction; Hypoxia; Lung; Macrophages; Male; Mice; Phagocytosis; Phosphorus Radioisotopes; Pneumonia; Pulmonary Alveoli; Pulmonary Edema; Rats; Staphylococcal Infections; Thiourea

Topics: Animals; Cell Count; Disease Models, Animal; Epithelium; Hypoxia; Injections, Intraperitoneal; Lung; Macrophages; Male; Microscopy, Electron; Naphthalenes; Oxygen; Pulmonary Alveoli; Pulmonary Edema; Rats; Respiration; Thiourea

Topics: Animals; Autoradiography; beta-Aminoethyl Isothiourea; Bone Marrow; Bone Marrow Cells; Cell Division; Cysteamine; DNA; Histamine; Hypoxia; Intestinal Mucosa; Mice; Radiation; Radiation-Protective Agents; Sulfhydryl Compounds; Thiourea; Thymidine; Tritium

Topics: Ascorbic Acid; beta-Aminoethyl Isothiourea; Cell Nucleus; Chromium; Chromium Isotopes; Cyanides; Cysteamine; Cysteine; Dinitrophenols; Hypoxia; Iodoacetates; Lymphocytes; Metabolism; Mitochondria; Nucleoproteins; Pharmacology; Radiation Injuries; Radiation Injuries, Experimental; Radiation Protection; Rats; Research; Serotonin; Sodium; Thiourea; Thymocytes; Thymus Gland; Vanadium