Project description:Consumption of a diet rich in saturated fatty acids and carbohydrates contributes to the accumulation of fat in the liver and development of non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Herein we investigated the hypothesis that short-term consumption of a high fat/sucrose Western diet (WD) alters the genomic and translatomic profile of the liver in association with changes in signaling through the protein kinase mTORC1, and that such alterations contribute to development of NAFLD. The results identify a plethora of mRNAs that exhibit altered expression and/or translation in the liver of rats consuming a WD compared to a CD. In particular, consumption of a WD altered the abundance and ribosome association of mRNAs involved in lipid and fatty acid metabolism, as well as those involved in glucose metabolism and insulin signaling. Hepatic mTORC1 signaling was enhanced when rats were fasted overnight and then refed in the morning; however, this effect was blunted in rats fed a WD as compared to a CD. Despite similar plasma insulin concentrations, fatty acid content was elevated in the liver of rats fed a WD as compared to a CD. We found that feeding had a significant positive effect on ribosome occupancy of 49 mRNAs associated with hepatic steatosis (e.g., LIPE, LPL), but this effect was blunted in the liver of rats fed a WD. In many cases, changes in ribosome association were independent of alterations in mRNA abundance, suggesting a critical role for diet-induced changes in mRNA translation in the expression of proteins encoded by those mRNAs. Overall, the findings demonstrate that short-term consumption of a WD impacts hepatic gene expression by altering the abundance of many mRNAs, but also causes wide-spread variation in mRNA translation that potentially contribute to development of hepatic steatosis.
Project description:Effect of "Sensory Protection" on the transcriptome of Gastrocnemius muscle denervated by Tibial nerve transection in the rat. Comparison is made between the muscle transcriptome in denervated muscle (D), muscle undergoing surgical repair with a motor nerve (immediate repair, or IR) and muscle undergoing surgical repair with a pure sensory nerve (sensory protection, or SP). There are 6 cohorts of rats with 4 to 6 rats in each cohort:<br><br>1 Month Denervated, 1 Month Immediate Repair, 1 Month Sensory Protection, 3 Month Denervated, 3 Month Immediate Repair, 3 Month Sensory Protection. <br><br>For each animal RNA was extracted from both the experimental operated (right) gastrocnemius muscle and the contralateral control unoperated (left) gastrocnemius. Samples were run in duplicate with fluorophor reversal experiments (i.e experimental limb RNA labelled with Cy3 and control limb RNA labelled with Cy5 and vice versa) to control for possible unequal incorporation of the dyes in the reverse transcription reaction.
Project description:Space flight missions last for a long time so bacterial infection during missions is considered a potential risk for astronauts. Studies of bacterial antibiotic resistance under spaceflight and simulated microgravity (SMG) have shown contrary results. To better understand the antibiotic stress resistance of K. pneumoniae in the microgravity environment, the original strain of K. pneumoniae (CGMCC 1.839), designated the KPO strain, was cultured under SMG conditions combined with background antibiotic exposure (SMGA) as the experimental group, while the control group was cultured in a NG environment without antibiotic exposure. After 20 cycles of incubation, the growth rate, antibiotic susceptibility, genomic , transcriptomic, and proteomic tests were conducted on the experimental and control groups designated the SMGA and NG strains, respectively.
Project description:In this study, we evaluated cell proliferation and gene expression of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) in simulated microgravity (SMG) and hypergravity (5 G).
Project description:The spaceflight experiment was carried out using male C57BL/10J mice (8 weeks old at launch). Wild type mice (n=3) were launched by Space Shuttle Discovery and housed on the International Space Station (ISS) for 91 days. They returned to the Earth by Space Shuttle Atlantis. But only one mouse returned to the Earth alive. Whole brain was sampled from the mouse killed by inhalation of carbon dioxide at the Life Sciences Support Facility of Kennedy Space Center within 3-4 hours after landing. After the spaceflight experiment, the on-ground experiment was also carried out at the Advanced Biotechnology Center in Genova, Italy. A mouse with the same species, sex, and age was housed in mice drawer system (MDS), which was utilized for the spaceflight (SF) mice, for 3 months as the ground control (GC). Another mouse was housed in normal vivarium cage as the laboratory control (LC). Amount of food and water supplementation and environmental conditions were simulated as the flight group. After 3 months, brain was sampled from one mouse in group GC and LC, respectively. Comprehensive analyses of gene expression were performed in the right brain. Total of 4,000 genes were analyzed. The expression levels of 60 genes significantly changed in response to SF compared with LC and/or GC. The 15 and 16 genes were up- (> 2 folds) and down-regulated (< 0.5 folds), respectively, following SF vs. GC. The levels of 58 genes were significantly altered by housing in MDS in space and/or on the ground. Forty seven and 11 genes were significantly up- and down-regulated vs. LC. Twenty seven out of these genes responded to caging in MDS both in space and on the ground. Further, 31 genes were influenced by housing in MDS on the Earth. Responses of the characteristics of brain to long-term gravitational unloading were investigated in mice.