Oxygen Enrichment Ameliorates Cardiorespiratory Alterations Induced by Chronic High-Altitude Hypoxia in Rats. 2020

Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, China.

Chronic high-altitude hypoxia (HAH) results in compensatory pathological adaptations, especially in the cardiorespiratory system. The oxygen enrichment technology can provide long-lasting oxygen supply and minimize oxygen toxicity, which has proven to be effective to increase oxygen saturation, decrease heart rate, and improve human exercise performance after ascending to high altitudes. Nevertheless, it remains unknown whether oxygen enrichment can resist chronic HAH-induced cardiorespiratory alterations. Thirty-six male rats were equally assigned to the normal control (NC), HAH, and HAH with oxygen enrichment (HAHO) groups. The HAH and HAHO rats were housed in a hypobaric hypoxia chamber equivalent to 5,000 m for 4 weeks. The HAHO rats were exposed to oxygen-enriched air for 8 h/day. We found that oxygen enrichment mitigated the augmented skin blood flow and improved the locomotor activity of HAH-exposed rats. Oxygen enrichment inhibited HAH-induced increase in the production of red blood cells (RBCs). The hemodynamic results showed that oxygen enrichment decreased right ventricular systolic pressure (RVSP) and mean pulmonary artery pressure (mPAP) in HAH-exposed rats. HAH-associated right ventricular hypertrophy and cardiomyocyte enlargement were ameliorated by oxygen enrichment. Oxygen enrichment inhibited HAH-induced excessive expression of cytokines associated with cardiac hypertrophy and myocardial fibrosis [angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE)/angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), angiotensin II (Ang II), collagen type I alpha 1 (Col1α1), collagen type III alpha 1 (Col3α1), and hydroxyproline] in the right ventricle (RV). Oxygen enrichment inhibited medial thickening, stenosis and fibrosis of pulmonary arterioles, and cytokine expression related with fibrosis (Col1α1, Col3α1, and hydroxyproline) and pulmonary vasoconstriction [endothelin-1(ET-1)] in HAH-exposed rats. This study represents the first effort testing the efficacy of the oxygen enrichment technique on cardiopulmonary structure and function in chronic HAH animals, and we found oxygen enrichment has the capability of ameliorating chronic HAH-induced cardiopulmonary alterations.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries

Related Publications

Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
April 2021, Life sciences,
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
February 1995, Respiration physiology,
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
January 2023, Frontiers in microbiology,
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
September 2021, High altitude medicine & biology,
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
August 2002, Cardiovascular research,
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
August 2022, Molecules (Basel, Switzerland),
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
January 1963, Pathologia et microbiologia,
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
July 2020, Life sciences,
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
January 2018, Frontiers in physiology,
Xi Shao, and Xu Dong, and Jing Cai, and Chi Tang, and Kangning Xie, and Zedong Yan, and Erping Luo, and Da Jing
June 2015, High altitude medicine & biology,
Copied contents to your clipboard!