Reduced pulmonary function is age-dependent in the rat lung in normoxia.

BACKGROUND: Oxygen transport is optimized at the cellular level, since oxygen serves as the terminal electron acceptor in mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation and several enzymatic processes require molecular oxygen as substrate. During development and aging, redundant cells and exhausted cells are eliminated, respectively, whereas others can adapt to the stressful environment and survive. OBJECTIVE: The study investigated the molecular mechanisms activated in the lung during normal aging, through the expression of hypoxia inducible factor (HIF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), p53, p66⊃Shc, putative cysteine protease (CPP32) and kinaseB-α phosphorylation (pIkB-α). MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twelve male Wistar rats divided into two age-groups, each consisting of 6 animals, 3 and 24 months old, were used. The rats were anesthetized with Nembutal (40 mg/kg, ip) and the lungs were excised from each rat and processed for TUNEL and Western blotting analyses. RESULTS: The expressions of p53, p66⊃Shc and CPP32 were significantly increased in the old normoxic rat lung specimens, when compared with the young ones. In parallel, expressions of VEGF and pIkBα were increased in old rather than young rats. CONCLUSIONS: Aging leads to increased expressions of p53, p66⊃Shc and CPP32, suggesting that apoptosis is in progress. At the same time, the lung tries to counteract apoptosis through the production of VEGF and pIkB-α to adapt itself to a stressful situation. The aging lung creates a life-support system in order to counteract the apoptotic process.

Inducible nitric oxide synthase-activated mitochondrial apoptotic pathway in hypoxic and aged rat hearts.

BACKGROUND: Hypoxia and aging determine on mammalian cells a stress response which implies modified production of oxidants, reactive oxygen species or reactive nitrogen species at the mitochondrial level, interfering with cell-signaling proteins and inducing mitochondrial damage, apoptosis occurrence and functional consequences. OBJECTIVE: Here we report the effects of hypoxia on the in vivo morphological and biochemical response of young and aged Wistar rat hearts. METHODS: Left ventricles were excised from each experimental point and processed. Investigations of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) expression and apoptotic events, mitochondrial damage, were performed by light and electron microscopy, respectively; endothelial, inducible and neuronal NOS, PKCα, pPKCα, caspase-3 expression and Apaf-1/cytochrome c complex formation were assessed by Western blotting and co-immunoprecipitation analyses, respectively. RESULTS: Besides morphological modifications, which confirm mitochondrial suffering upon hypoxia exposure in both young and aged hearts, the role played by PKCα in controlling nitric oxide synthase (NOS) protein level was investigated. Downstream PKCα activation, a dramatic iNOS expression increase, concomitant to enhanced apoptotic cell percentage and Apaf-1/cytochrome c co-immunoprecipitation, is evident in the hypoxic young, suggesting iNOS-mediated activation of the mitochondrial apoptotic pathway. CONCLUSIONS: Moreover, overexpression of iNOS and VEGF in the hypoxic young rat hearts suggests that an increased VEGF level may allow coordinated development of the lymphatic and blood vasculature, necessary for fluid homeostasis and to counteract oxidative stress. Thus the inhibition of such growth factor proposes new therapeutic possibilities for diseases associated to vascular function and for solid tumors which show pathological angiogenesis and lymphoangiogenesis.

Neuroglobin in aging carotid bodies.

Neuroglobin (Ngb) is a member of the vertebrate globin family expressed particularly in the brain and in the retina. Ngb is concentrated in the mitochondria-containing areas of neurons, and its distribution is correlated with oxygen consumption rates. Previously we have shown that Ngb is expressed in carotid body (CB) tissues. Considering that hypoxia and aging may be linked through a series of adaptive and protective mechanisms (e.g. reduction in mitochondrial numbers), we investigate the role of Ngb during aging and hypoxia. Two groups of six rats (age-matched 3 and 24 months old) were kept in room air as a control groups, the others two groups were kept in a Plexiglas chamber for 12 days in chronic hypoxia (10-12% inspired oxygen). The presence of Ngb in the CB tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry using a polyclonal antibody. Ngb immunoreactivity was significantly higher in CB tissues from young rats exposed to chronic intermittent hypoxia, whereas CB tissues from old rats did not show any significant increase in Ngb levels after hypoxia. Similar to hemoglobin, Ngb may act as a respiratory protein by reversibly binding gaseous ligands NO and O(2) and could act as a NO scavenger and participate in detoxification of Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) generated under hypoxic conditions.

Physiological carotid body denervation during aging.

Aging is characterized by a lower homeostatic capacity and the carotid body (CB) plays an important role during aging. Here, we sought to elucidate whether the aging effects on the oxygen-sensitive mechanisms in CB cells occur through a reduction of the contact surfaces in the synaptic junctions. The hypothesis was that the CB would undergo a "physiological denervation" in old age. Two groups of male Wistar rats, young (2-3 months old) and senescent (22 months old) were used. CBs were rapidly dissected and the specimens were subjected to a routine transmission electron microscopic procedure. Expressions of HIF-1 proportional, variant, VEGF and NOS-1 were evaluated by immunohistochemical analysis. Our results show that in the old CB, HIF-1 proportional, variant, VEGF and NOS-1 expressions decrease. The cell volume, the number of mitochondria and that of dense-cored vesicles were reduced, and the nucleus shrank. There also was an accumulation of lipofuscin and a proliferation of extracellular matrix. Most importantly, there were fewer synaptic connections between chemoreceptor cells. The total number of synapses observed in all electronograms decreased from 125 in the young to 28 in the old CB. These results suggest the aging CB undergoes a "physiological denervation" leading to a reduction in homeostatic capacity. The age-related reduction of synaptic junctions may be a self-protective mechanism through which cells buffer themselves against reactive oxygen species accumulation during aging.

Does hypoxia cause sarcopenia? Prevention of hypoxia could reduce sarcopenia.

Sarcopenia is the physiological age-related reduction of muscle mass and strength. Considering that life span is correlated with metabolic rate and mitochondria are the site of oxygen consumption, muscle mitochondria volume densities were determined by morphometric analysis. We found a tight correlation between aging and hypoxia with decrease in muscle total mitochondria volume. Therefore, hypoxia and aging seem to share some common pathways, allowing hypoxic models to be used for the study of the aging processes. Additional research will be required to fully elucidate the correlations among aging, sarcopenia and hypoxia, but these findings provide a starting point for such investigations.

Aging and expression of heme oxygenase-1 and endothelin-1 in the rat carotid body after chronic hypoxia.

Hypoxia transiently increases transcription of the gene encoding heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) and potently activates production of endothelin-1 (ET-1), the latter of which plays a central role in cellular adaptation to hypoxia. The ventilatory response to hypoxia attenuates with aging, and decreased responsiveness to hypoxia is seen in the aged vs. young rats, suggesting that the functionality of the oxygen-sensitive mechanism is age-dependent. In the present study, we examined the effects of aging on the expression of HO-1 and ET-1 in the carotid body, which is a small cluster of chemoreceptors and supporting cells that measure changes in the composition of arterial blood flowing through it. Our results revealed that HO-1 and ET-1 were expressed in carotid bodies of both young and old rats, although less so in the old ones. Exposure to chronic intermittent hypoxia significantly increased both HO-1 and ET-1 immunoreactivity in both young and old carotid body tissues, with the persisting age-dependent inequality to the disadvantage of old age. Considering that ET-1 is capable of enhancing intermittent hypoxia-induced chemosensory responses by the carotid body, our results suggest that decreased induction of ET-1 and HO-1 during aging could form the basis for age-related reductions in chemosensory discharge.