Transcriptional Profiling in the Intestinal of Rats under Hypobaric Hypoxia

Abstract

High-altitude ascent induces various physiological changes, with Gastrointestinal (GI) disorders being a prevalent occurrence. The gut plays a pivotal role in maintaining overall body homeostasis during normal physiological adaptation. The molecular and pathophysiological mechanisms underlying gastrointestinal injury resulting from exposure to a hypoxic environment remain largely unknown. To comprehensively explore the potential physiological changes associated with intestinal disorders after exposure to a hypobaric hypoxic environment, we employed genome-wide transcriptional profiling to examine gene expression alterations in the small intestine of rats. Our study involved RNA-Sequencing (RNA-Seq) of the intestinal tissues of rats exposed to simulated hypobaric hypoxia for 2 weeks (W2Z) and 4 weeks (W4Z), allowing us to investigate the transcriptional profile during both acute and chronic hypobaric hypoxic conditions in this animal model. We identified differentially expressed genes among the three groups. A principal component analysis revealed substantial distinctions between the acute and chronic hypobaric hypoxia groups when compared to the control group. Furthermore, pathway analysis indicated that the differentially expressed genes were associated with the interaction of neuroactive ligands and receptors. This suggests that the adaptation of rats to hypobaric hypoxia involves, at least partially, the regulation of the neuroactive ligand-receptor interaction pathway.