Author:
Ding Boyang,Zhao Yuliang,Sun Yanfeng,Zhang Qian,Li Mo,Nabi Ghulam,Wu Yuefeng,Jiang Chuan,Li Dongming
Abstract
Abstract
Background
Efficient and selective utilization of metabolic substrates is one of the key strategies in high-altitude animals to cope with hypoxia and hypothermia. Previous findings have shown that the energy substrate utilization of highland animals varies with evolutionary history and phylogeny. The heart is a proxy for the cardiopulmonary system, and the metabolic substrate utilization in the myocardium is also under the strong selective pressure of chronically hypoxic and hypothermic environments. However, little information is available on the physiological adjustments in relation to metabolic substrate utilization in the myocardium for coping with high-altitude environments.
Methods
We compared the metabolic enzyme activities, including hexokinase (HK), phosphofructokinase (PFK), pyruvate kinase (PK), citrate synthase (CS), carnitine palmitoyl transferase 1 (CPT-1), lactic dehydrogenase (LDH), and creatine kinase (CK), and metabolic substrate contents including glucose (Glu), triglyceride (TG), and free fatty acid (FFA) in the myocardium of a typical human commensal species, Eurasian Tree Sparrows (Passermontanus) between the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (the QTP, 3230 m) and low altitude population (Shijiazhuang, 80 m), and between sexes.
Results
Among the seven metabolic enzymes and three substrates investigated, we identified no significant differences in PK, CPT-1, HK, CS, LDH, and CK activities and TG content of the myocardium between high and low altitude populations. However, the QTP sparrows had significantly lower Glu content and PFK activities but higher FFA content relative to their lowland counterparts. In addition, male sparrows had higher myocardial HK and CS activities relative to females, independent of altitude.
Conclusions
Our results showed that the QTP sparrows elevated fatty acid utilization rather than glucose preference in the myocardium relative to lowland counterpart, which contributes to uncovering both the physiological adjustments for adapting to the extreme conditions of the QTP, intraspecifically.
Funder
National Natural Science Foundation of China
Second Tibetan Plateau Scientific Expedition and Research Program
Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province
Subject
Animal Science and Zoology,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Cited by
5 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献