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At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2003

Anoxia tolerance in rice seedlings: exogenous glucose improves growth of an anoxia-'intolerant', but not of a 'tolerant' genotype.

This study demonstrated that, in rice seedlings, genotypic difference in tolerance to anoxia only occurred when anoxia was imposed at imbibition, but not at 3 d after imbibition. When seeds were imbibed and grown in anoxia, IR22 (anoxia-'intolerant') grew much slower and had lower soluble sugar concentrations in coleoptiles and seeds than Amaroo (anoxia-'tolerant'), while Calrose was intermediate. After 3 d in anoxia, the sugar concentrations in embryos and endosperms of anoxic seedlings were nearly 4-fold lower in IR22 than in Amaroo. Sugar deficit in the embryo of IR22 is presumably due to the limitation of sugar mobilization rather than the capacity of transport as shown by similar sugar accumulation ratios of 1.8 between embryo and endosperm in IR22 and Amaroo at 3 d in anoxia. With 20 mol m-3 exogenous glucose, coleoptile extension and fresh weight increments in anoxic seedlings of IR22 were much closer to those in the two other genotypes, nevertheless protein concentration remained lowest on a fresh weight basis in the coleoptiles of IR22; indicating that protein synthesis has a lower priority for energy apportionment during anoxia than processes crucial to coleoptile extension. In contrast to these responses to anoxia imposed at imbibition, IR22 had nearly the same high tolerance to anoxia as Calrose and Amaroo, when anoxia was imposed on seedlings subsequent to 48 h aeration followed by 16 h hypoxic pretreatment. In fact, coleoptiles of anoxic IR22 had higher sugar concentrations and grew faster than Calrose, and exogenous glucose had no effect on the coleoptile extension of IR22. Excised coleoptile tips of IR22 and Amaroo with exogenous glucose had similar rates of ethanol production and were equally tolerant to anoxia. In conclusion, much of the anoxia 'intolerance' of IR22 when germinated in anoxia could be attributed to limited substrate availability to the embryo and coleoptile, presumably due to slow starch hydrolysis in the endosperm.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

PubMed2005

Characterization of sub-nuclear changes in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos exposed to brief, intermediate and long-term anoxia to analyze anoxia-induced cell cycle arrest.

BACKGROUND: The soil nematode C. elegans survives oxygen-deprived conditions (anoxia; <.001 kPa O2) by entering into a state of suspended animation in which cell cycle progression reversibly arrests. The majority of blastomeres of embryos exposed to anoxia arrest at interphase, prophase and metaphase. The spindle checkpoint proteins SAN-1 and MDF-2 are required for embryos to survive 24 hours of anoxia. To further investigate the mechanism of cell-cycle arrest we examined and compared sub-nuclear changes such as chromatin localization pattern, post-translational modification of histone H3, spindle microtubules, and localization of the spindle checkpoint protein SAN-1 with respect to various anoxia exposure time points. To ensure analysis of embryos exposed to anoxia and not post-anoxic recovery we fixed all embryos in an anoxia glove box chamber. RESULTS: Embryos exposed to brief periods to anoxia (30 minutes) contain prophase blastomeres with chromosomes in close proximity to the nuclear membrane, condensation of interphase chromatin and metaphase blastomeres with reduced spindle microtubules density. Embryos exposed to longer periods of anoxia (1-3 days) display several characteristics including interphase chromatin that is further condensed and in close proximity to the nuclear membrane, reduction in spindle structure perimeter and reduced localization of SAN-1 at the kinetochore. Additionally, we show that the spindle checkpoint protein SAN-1 is required for brief periods of anoxia-induced cell cycle arrest, thus demonstrating that this gene product is vital for early anoxia responses. In this report we suggest that the events that occur as an immediate response to brief periods of anoxia directs cell cycle arrest. CONCLUSION: From our results we conclude that the sub-nuclear characteristics of embryos exposed to anoxia depends upon exposure time as assayed using brief (30 minutes), intermediate (6 or 12 hours) or long-term (24 or 72 hours) exposures. Analyzing these changes will lead to an understanding of the mechanisms required for initiation and maintenance of cell cycle arrest in respect to anoxia exposure time as well as order the events that occur to bring about anoxia-induced cell cycle arrest.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Carbohydrate metabolism in the central nervous system of the megalobulimus oblongus snail during anoxia exposure and post-anoxia recovery.

The effects of anoxic exposure and the post-anoxia aerobic recovery period on carbohydrate metabolism in the central nervous system (CNS) of the land snail Megalobulimus oblongus, an anoxia-tolerant land gastropod, were studied. The snails were exposed to anoxia for periods of 1.5, 3, 6, 12, 18, or 24 hr. In order to study the post-anoxia recovery phase, snails exposed to a 3-hr period of anoxia were returned to aerobic conditions for 1.5, 3, 6, or 15 hr. Glycogen and glucose concentrations in the CNS, hemolymph glucose concentration, and glycogen phosphorylase (active form, GPa) activity in the CNS were analyzed. Anoxia does not significantly affect the concentration of CNS glucose but induces hyperglycemia and a reduction of CNS GPa activity. The glycogen concentration was decreased at 12 hr of anoxia; however, by 18 and 24 hr in anoxia, the glycogen content was not significantly different from basal control values. During the post-anoxia period, the reduction in GPa activity and the increased hemolymph glucose concentration induced by anoxia returned to control values. These results suggest that the CNS of M. oblongus may use hemolymph glucose to fulfill the metabolic demands during anoxia. However, the hypothesis of tissue metabolic arrest cannot be excluded.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

PubMed1985

Effect of "flow anoxia" and "non flow anoxia" on the NAD/NADH redox state of the intact brain cortex of the cat.

In the present study, we compared the nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) reducing potencies of "flow anoxia" and "non flow anoxia" in the cat brain cortex. In animals anaesthetized with alpha D-glucochloralose "flow anoxia" and "non flow anoxia" were produced by ventilating for 2 and 25 min, respectively, with nitrogen gas. Following "non flow anoxia" the brain cortices of dead animals were superfused with oxygen saturated artificial cerebrospinal fluid (mock CSF), and subsequently with CSF containing various concentrations (10(-3 -10 -1) M) of potassium cyanide. NADH (reduced NAD) fluorescence of the brain cortex was measured through a cranial window with a microscope fluororeflectometer. Ventilating the animals for 2 and 25 min with nitrogen gas increased cortical NADH fluorescence (NAD reduction) by 43.5 +/- 2.8% and 135.3 +/- 6.1%, respectively. Oxygen saturated CSF superfusion of the ischemic brain cortex restored the cortical NAD/NADH redox state to the preanoxic level (oxidation of NADH). 10(-1) M cyanide, applied after superfusion of the brain cortex with oxygen saturated CSF resulted in comparable NAD reduction to that produced by "non flow anoxia". On the basis of these findings it is suggested that "non flow anoxia" leads to much greater cortical NAD reduction than "flow anoxia", because oxygen tension in the cortex may not fall to zero mm Hg during nitrogen anoxia lasting for 2 min. Besides this, a more pronounced substrate mobilization and acidosis may also contribute to the greater NAD reducing potency of "now flow anoxia".(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animals↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Effect of anoxia and pharmacological anoxia on whole-cell NMDA receptor currents in cortical neurons from the western painted turtle.

The mammalian brain undergoes rapid cell death during anoxia that is characterized by uncontrolled Ca(2+) entry via N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs). In contrast, the western painted turtle is extremely anoxia tolerant and maintains close-to-normal [Ca(2+)](i) during periods of anoxia lasting from days to months. A plausible mechanism of anoxic survival in turtle neurons is the regulation of NMDARs to prevent excitotoxic Ca(2+) injury. However, studies using metabolic inhibitors such as cyanide (NaCN) as a convenient method to induce anoxia may not represent a true anoxic stress. This study was undertaken to determine whether turtle cortical neuron whole-cell NMDAR currents respond similarly to true anoxia with N(2) and to NaCN-induced anoxia. Whole-cell NMDAR currents were measured during a control N(2)-induced anoxic transition and a control NaCN-induced transition. During anoxia with N(2) normalized, NMDAR currents decreased to 35.3%+/-10.8% of control values. Two different NMDAR current responses were observed during NaCN-induced anoxia: one resulted in a 172%+/-51% increase in NMDAR currents, and the other was a decrease to 48%+/-14% of control. When responses were correlated to the two major neuronal subtypes under study, we found that stellate neurons responded to NaCN treatment with a decrease in NMDAR current, while pyramidal neurons exhibited both increases and decreases. Our results show that whole-cell NMDAR currents respond differently to NaCN-induced anoxia than to the more physiologically relevant anoxia with N(2).

Animals↗

PubMed2000

Impact of post-anoxia stress on membrane lipids of anoxia-pretreated potato cells. A re-appraisal.

The importance of lipid peroxidation and its contributing pathways (via reactive oxygen species and lipoxygenase) during post-anoxia was evaluated with respect to the biphasic behavior of membrane lipids under anoxia (A. Rawyler, D. Pavelic, C. Gianinazzi, J. Oberson, R. Brändle [1999] Plant Physiol 120: 293-300), using potato (Solanum tuberosum cv Bintje) cell cultures. When anoxic cells in the pre-lytic phase were re-oxygenated for 2 h, superoxide anion was not detectable, the hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) level remained small and similar to that of controls, and cell viability was preserved. Lipids were intact and no lipid hydroperoxides were detected. However, small amounts of lipid hydroperoxides accumulated upon feeding anoxic cells with H(2)O(2) and incubation for an additional 2 h under anoxia. When cells that entered the lytic phase of anoxia were re-oxygenated for 2 h, the H(2)O(2) and superoxide anion levels were essentially unchanged. However, cell respiration decreased, reflecting the extensive lipid hydrolysis that had already started under anoxia and continued during post-anoxia. Simultaneous with the massive release of free polyunsaturated fatty acids, small amounts of lipid hydroperoxides were formed, reaching 1% to 2% of total fatty acids. Catalase and superoxide dismutase activities were not greatly affected, whereas the amount and activity of lipoxygenase tended to increase during anoxia. Lipid peroxidation in potato cells is therefore low during post-anoxia. It is mainly due to lipoxygenase, whereas the contribution of reactive oxygen species is negligible. But above all, it is a late event that occurs only when irreversible damage is already caused by the anoxia-triggered lipid hydrolysis.

Cell Hypoxia↗

PubMed1994

Prior episode of anoxia attenuates vasorelaxation in response to subsequent episode of anoxia.

To examine the effect of a prior episode of anoxia on subsequent anoxia-mediated vasorelaxation, norepinephrine-precontracted endothelium-intact rat aortic rings were first exposed to anoxia (95% N2-5% CO2 for 5, 15, or 30 min) then to normoxia (95% O2-5% CO2 for 15 min). These rings were exposed again to anoxia for 30 min. First exposure of rings to anoxia for 30 min resulted in 77 +/- 4% decrease in tone (vasorelaxation), whereas second exposure resulted in only 10 +/- 4% relaxation (n = 11, P < 0.001 vs. relaxation during first exposure). First exposure of rings to anoxia for 5 or 15 min also diminished relaxation to 59 +/- 3 and 19 +/- 8%, respectively, on second exposure to anoxia (both P < 0.01 vs. relaxation during 1st anoxia). Attenuation of vasorelaxation by prior episode of anoxia was not affected by treatment of rings with indomethacin (10(-5) M), the Ca2+ channel blocker felodipine (10(-6) M), the superoxide anion scavenger superoxide dismutase (100 micrograms/ml), or adenosine A1 and A2 blockers (each 10(-6) M). To examine the role of intact functional endothelium in attenuation of vasorelaxation during second anoxic exposure, rings were deendothelialized and treated with the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor NG-monomethyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA; 10(-4) M) or the guanylate cyclase inhibitor methylene blue (MB; 2 x 10(-5) M). In all deendothelialized rings, vasorelaxation during second anoxic exposure was similar to that during first anoxic exposure (100 +/- 0 vs. 98 +/- 3%, P = NS).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adenosine↗

PubMed1997

Effects of energy limitation on Ca2+ and K+ homeostasis in anoxia-tolerant and anoxia-intolerant hepatocytes.

To gain more insight into the mechanistic basis of anoxia tolerance and intolerance, a comparative study was conducted on calcium homeostasis in goldfish and trout hepatocytes subjected to different forms of energy limitation. Using the fluorescent Ca2+ indicator fura 2, we observed that both chemical anoxia and true anoxia led to an increase of the concentration of cytosolic free calcium (Ca2+i) in the anoxia-sensitive hepatocytes of rainbow trout, whereas Ca2+i was maintained at control levels in the anoxia-tolerant hepatocytes of goldfish. Various lines of evidence suggest an intracellular origin of the Ca2+ increase observed in trout cells. Cyclosporin A, a specific inhibitor of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore in mammalian cells, was ineffective in preventing the Ca2+ increase, whereas a high dose of fructose depressed the Ca2+ surge by approximately 50%. The latter effect was not accompanied by improvement of the energetic state of the cells. A comparison of chemical anoxia with true (physiological) anoxia revealed that both treatments affected energy metabolism to a similar degree in trout hepatocytes, whereas the decrease of ATP seen in goldfish hepatocytes during chemical anoxia was absent during true anoxia. Elevation of Ca2+i with the calcium ionophore A-23187 led to a decoupling of unidirectional K+ fluxes in both normoxic and anoxic trout cells, whereas in goldfish hepatocytes the coupling of K+ fluxes was not affected by the rise of Ca2+i.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

PubMed2001

Complete suppression of protein synthesis during anoxia with no post-anoxia protein synthesis debt in the red-eared slider turtle Trachemys scripta elegans.

Two previous studies of the effects of anoxia on protein synthesis in anoxia-tolerant turtles (Trachemys scripta elegans, Chrysemys picta bellii) have generated opposing results. Using the flooding-dose method, we measured the rate of protein synthesis following injection and incorporation of a large dose of radiolabelled phenylalanine to resolve the question of whether anoxia results in a downregulation of protein synthesis. After 1 h of anoxia, levels of protein-incorporated radiolabel indicated that protein synthesis rates in the intestine, heart, liver, brain, muscle and lungs were not significantly different from those of normoxic controls. However, from 1 to 6 h of anoxia, quantities of protein-incorporated radiolabel did not increase, suggesting that protein synthesis had ceased or had decreased below a measurable level. There was also no significant post-anoxia increase in protein synthesis rates above normoxic control levels during 3 h of recovery from anoxia. RNA-to-protein ratios did not change significantly in any tissue except the heart, in which RNA levels decreased below normoxic control levels after 6 h of anoxia. Except in the heart, downregulation of protein synthesis during anoxia does not appear to be mediated by changes in tissue RNA concentration.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Hepatopancreas gluconeogenesis during anoxia and post-anoxia recovery in Chasmagnathus granulata crabs maintained on high-protein or carbohydrate-rich diets.

C. granulata is a semiterrestrial crab that lives in the mesolittoral and the supralittoral zones of estuaries and faces hypoxia and anoxia when exposed to atmospheric air. The carbohydrate or protein content of the diets administered to the crabs induced different metabolic adjustments during anoxia and post-anoxia recovery period. During the first hour in anoxia a marked increase in L-lactate concentration in hemolymph was induced, followed by a reduction in its levels accompanied by two peaks in hepatopancreas gluconeogenic capacity. Anoxia exposure did not induce a reduction in the hepatopancreas phosphoenolpyruvate carboxykinase activity in either dietary group. Our results suggest that in anaerobiosis this crab uses the conversion of lactate to glucose in hepatopancreas to maintain the acid-base balance and the glucose supply. In post-anoxia recovery, the fate of L-lactate is the hepatopancreas gluconeogenesis in high protein maintained crabs. On the other hand, in the crabs maintained on carbohydrate-rich diet the L-lactate levels decreased gradually in the hemolymph during the post-anoxia recovery; however, the hepatopancreas gluconeogenesis did not increase. In both dietary groups, an increase in the gluconeogenic capacity of hepatopancreas occurred at 30 h of post-anoxia recovery.

Anaerobiosis↗

PubMed1996

Membrane-metabolic coupling and ion homeostasis in anoxia-tolerant and anoxia-intolerant hepatocytes.

The relationship between membrane function and energy metabolism was studied in rainbow trout hepatocytes, an anoxia-intolerant cell system, and compared with the situation in hepatocytes from the goldfish, a typical anoxia-tolerant species. In trout hepatocytes, under normoxia and under chemical anoxia, inhibition of ATP consumption by the Na+ pump induced a decrease in ATP production of the same magnitude. In response to chemical anoxia, total ATP production was reduced to 15% and Na+ pump activity to 22% of the control rate under normoxia. Measurement of the cellular ATP content under these conditions revealed that, despite the reduction in Na+ pump activity, the cells became rapidly depleted of ATP, with the time course of this process resembling that observed in the anoxic rat hepatocyte. This is in contrast to the responses of goldfish hepatocytes, where, during chemical anoxia, 1) inhibition of the Na+ pump did not lead to a corresponding reduction in ATP production and 2) ATP levels, after a transient decrease, stabilized at a new steady state. To investigate the consequences of chemical anoxia on ion homeostasis, efflux and uptake rates of K+ were determined simultaneously. In the trout cells, chemical anoxia led to a decoupling of influx and efflux rates, the latter exceeding the former three- to eightfold. In contrast, goldfish hepatocytes were able to preserve ion homeostasis by a concerted decrease in Rb+ uptake and K+ efflux, so that the net flux of K+ was always close to zero. In neither species did chemical anoxia induce a change in pump density. Other potential control mechanisms are briefly discussed.

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

PubMed2006

Gene transcription of neuroglobin is upregulated by hypoxia and anoxia in the brain of the anoxia-tolerant turtle Trachemys scripta.

Neuroglobin is a heme protein expressed in the vertebrate brain in mammals, fishes, and birds. The physiological role of neuroglobin is not completely understood but possibilities include serving as an intracellular oxygen-carrier or oxygen-sensor, as a terminal oxidase to regenerate NAD(+) under anaerobic conditions, or involvement in NO or ROS metabolism. As the vertebrate nervous system is particularly sensitive to hypoxia, an intracellular protein that helps sustain cellular respiration would aid hypoxic survival. However, the regulation of Neuroglobin (Ngb) under conditions of varying oxygen is controversial. This study examines the regulation of Ngb in an anoxia-tolerant vertebrate under conditions of hypoxia and anoxia. The freshwater turtle Trachemys scripta can withstand complete anoxia for days, and adaptations that permit neuronal survival have been extensively examined. Turtle neuroglobin specific primers were employed in RT-PCR for determining the regulation of neuroglobin mRNA expression in turtles placed in normoxia, hypoxia (4 h), anoxia (1 and 4 h), and anoxia-reoxygenation. Whole brain expression of neuroglobin is strongly upregulated by hypoxia and post-anoxic-reoxygenation in T. scripta, with a lesser degree of upregulation at 1 and 4 h anoxia. Our data implicate neuroglobin in mediating brain anoxic survival.

Analysis of Variance↗

PubMed2006

Beyond anoxia: the physiology of metabolic downregulation and recovery in the anoxia-tolerant turtle.

The freshwater turtle Trachemys scripta is among the most anoxia-tolerant of vertebrates, a true facultative anaerobe able to survive without oxygen for days at room temperature to weeks or months during winter hibernation. Our good friend and colleague Peter Lutz devoted nearly 25 years to the study of the physiology of anoxia tolerance in these and other model organisms, promoting not just the basic science but also the idea that understanding the physiology and molecular mechanisms behind anoxia tolerance provides insights into critical survival pathways that may be applicable to the hypoxic/ischemic mammalian brain. Work by Peter and his colleagues focused on the factors which enable the turtle to enter a deep hypometabolic state, including decreases in ion flux ("channel arrest"), increases in inhibitory neuromodulators like adenosine and GABA, and the maintenance of low extracellular levels of excitatory compounds such as dopamine and glutamate. Our attention has recently turned to molecular mechanisms of anoxia tolerance, including the upregulation of such protective factors as heat shock proteins (Hsp72, Hsc73), the reversible downregulation of voltage gated potassium channels, and the modulation of MAP kinase pathways. In this review we discuss three phases of anoxia tolerance, including the initial metabolic downregulation over the first several hours, the long-term maintenance of neuronal function over days to weeks of anoxia, and finally recovery upon reoxygenation, with necessary defenses against reactive oxygen stress.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

PubMed1991

Midazolam improves electrophysiologic recovery after anoxia and reduces the changes in ATP levels and calcium influx during anoxia in the rat hippocampal slice.

Since blockers of excitatory transmission have been shown to reduce anoxic and ischemic neuronal damage, augmentation of inhibitory transmission by agents such as midazolam might have a similar protective effect. Rat hippocampal slices were maintained in vitro and used to determine whether and by what mechanism midazolam improves recovery of evoked responses after anoxia. The Schaffer collateral pathway in the slice was stimulated electrically, and an extracellular potential, the evoked population spike, was recorded from the CA1 pyramidal cells, which are postsynaptic. The slices were made anoxic by substituting artificial cerebrospinal fluid aerated with 95% nitrogen-5% carbon dioxide for fluid aerated with 95% oxygen-5% carbon dioxide. Percentage recovery was expressed as the amplitude of the evoked population spike 60 min after anoxia divided by its preanoxic amplitude. Protection in this model is defined as a significant (P less than 0.05) improvement in percentage recovery compared to the recovery of untreated slices. There was no recovery of the response recorded from CA1 pyramidal cells after 5 min of anoxia (4 +/- 2%) (mean +/- standard error of the mean [SEM]). Slices were treated with midazolam 10 min before, during, and 10 min after anoxia. Midazolam (1 microM) did not enhance recovery after anoxia when dissolved either in water (3 +/- 3%) or in dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) (1 +/- 1%). A higher concentration of midazolam (100 microM) did enhance recovery when dissolved in DMSO (27 +/- 7%) but not when dissolved in water (5 +/- 2%). To test whether prolonged pretreatment with midazolam dissolved in water would enhance recovery, slices were treated for 30 min prior to anoxia.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Adenosine Triphosphate↗

PubMed1993

Response of protein synthesis to anoxia and recovery in anoxia-tolerant hepatocytes.

Hepatocytes from the western painted turtle (Chrysemys picta bellii) display a profound metabolic suppression under anoxia. Fractional rates of protein synthesis fell by 92% during 12 h anoxia at 25 degrees C and were indistinguishable from the rate obtained with cycloheximide. Normoxic recovery saw protein synthesis increase to 160% of control values and return to normal after 2 h. The GTP-to-GDP ratio, implicated in the control of translation, fell threefold during anoxia. Purine nucleotide phosphate profiles suggest that this change occurs through increasing concentrations of ADP and GDP, with concentrations of ATP and GTP and total purines remaining constant. The normoxic cost for protein synthesis was calculated at 47.6 +/- 6.8 mmol ATP/g protein. Normoxic protein synthesis accounted for 36% of overall ATP turnover rates, close to the extent of O2 consumption inhibitable by cycloheximide (28%). Under anoxia, the proportion of ATP turnover utilized by protein synthesis did not change significantly. ATP turnover rates for urea synthesis reflected a similar pattern, falling 72% under anoxia. These results reflect the cell's ability to suppress protein synthesis under anoxia in a manner that is coordinated with the reduction in total metabolic rate.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

PubMed1989

[Anoxia-reoxygenation injury in isolated rat myocytes is modulated by cell sodium during the anoxia period].

Using the model of anoxia-reoxygenation injury in isolated rat myocytes, we observed that incubation of myocytes with ouabain, inhibitor of Na+-K+ ATPase, during anoxia period significantly increased the cell sodium content. These myocytes demonstrated severe injury and intracellular calcium overload during reoxygenation period. The sodium content of myocytes at the end of anoxia period was positively correlated with the overload of intracellular calcium at reoxygenation (r = 0.882, P less than 0.01). Mn2+, an inhibitor of Na+-Ca2+ exchange, significantly attenuated the anoxia-reoxygenation injury when given during reoxygenation period. Mn2+ also inhibited the cell injury caused by incubation of myocytes with Na+-free medium. These results suggest that anoxia-reoxygenation injury of rat myocytes is modulated by cell sodium during the anoxia period, and the Na+-Ca2+ exchange mechanism plays an important role in influx of extracellular calcium during reoxygenation period.

Animals↗

PubMed1995

High levels of ascorbic acid, not glutathione, in the CNS of anoxia-tolerant reptiles contrasted with levels in anoxia-intolerant species.

Ascorbic acid and glutathione (GSH) are antioxidants and free radical scavengers that provide the first line of defense against oxidative damage in the CNS. Using HPLC with electrochemical detection, we determined tissue contents of these antioxidants in brain and spinal cord in species with varying abilities to tolerate anoxia, including anoxia-tolerant pond and box turtles, moderately tolerant garter snakes, anoxia-intolerant clawed frogs (Xenopus laevis), and intolerant Long-Evans hooded rats. These data were compared with ascorbate and GSH levels in selected regions of guinea pig CNS, human cortex, and values from the literature. Ascorbate levels in turtles were typically 100% higher than those in rat. Cortex, olfactory bulb, and dorsal ventricular ridge had the highest content in turtle, 5-6 mumol g-1 of tissue wet weight, which was twice that in rat cortex (2.82 +/- 0.05 mumol g-1) and threefold greater than in guinea pig cortex (1.71 +/- 0.03 mumol g-1). Regionally distinct levels (2-4 mumol g-1) were found in turtle cerebellum, optic lobe, brainstem, and spinal cord, with a decreasing anterior-to-posterior gradient. Ascorbate was lowest in white matter (optic nerve) in each species. Snake cortex and brainstem had significantly higher ascorbate levels than in rat or guinea pig, although other regions had comparable or lower levels. Frog ascorbate was generally in an intermediate range between that in rat and guinea pig. In contrast to ascorbate, GSH levels in anoxia-tolerant turtles, 2-3 mumol g-1 of tissue wet weight, were similar to those in mammalian or amphibian brain, with no consistent pattern associated with anoxia tolerance. GSH levels in pond turtle CNS were significantly higher (by 10-20%) than in rat for several regions but were generally lower than in guinea pig or frog. GSH in box turtle and snake CNS were the same or lower than in rat or guinea pig. The distribution GSH in the CNS also had a decreasing anterior-to-posterior gradient but with less variability than ascorbate: levels were similar in optic nerve, brainstem, and spinal cord. The paradoxically high levels of ascorbate in turtle brain, which has a lower rate of oxidative metabolism than mammalian, suggest that ascorbate is an essential cerebral antioxidant. High levels may have evolved to protect cells from oxidative damage when aerobic metabolism resumes after a hypoxic dive.

Adaptation, Physiological↗

PubMed1994

Effect of anoxia on isolated turtle tissues: is the response to anoxia mediated by protein kinase second messengers?

Organ slices from the turtle Trachemys scripta elegans were incubated under aerobic and anoxic conditions to examine the effect of protein kinase (PrK) second messengers in potentiating the biochemical responses to anoxia exposure. Incubating liver slices from aerobic animals under anoxic conditions produced biochemical changes exactly similar to those observed in vivo: phosphofructokinase (PFK) was more sensitive to citrate inhibition and the percentage of glycogen phosphorylase (GP) in the active a form increased. On the other hand, incubating brain and heart tissue slices under anoxic conditions produced no changes in PFK and GP kinetic constants. Addition of PrK second messengers (dibutyryl-cAMP or Ca2+ plus phorbol myristate acetate) to the incubated tissues did not promote anoxia-associated changes in aerobically incubated tissues nor did they prevent anoxia-associated changes in anaerobically incubated tissues. These results suggest that unidentified external hormonal signals mediate heart and brain responses to anoxia. It is also apparent that cAMP and Ca2+ plus phospholipid do not play a role in bringing about the anoxia-induced changes in PFK, GP and fructose 2,6-bisphosphate in liver of turtles.

Aerobiosis↗