TY - JOUR
T1 - Persistent structural adaptation in the lungs of guinea pigs raised at high altitude
AU - Ravikumar, Priya
AU - Bellotto, Dennis J.
AU - Hsia, Connie C W
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank the staff of the University of California, White Mountain Research Station for their support and assistance in facilitating this study. We also thank Jeanne-Marie Quevedo for administrative assistance, Jennifer Fehmel for technical assistance, and the staff of the Animal Resources Center at University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center for their veterinary assistance. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute R01 grants HL054060 and HL045716 and UO1 grant HL111146 supported this research. The contents of this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute or of the National Institutes of Health.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2014 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2015/3/1
Y1 - 2015/3/1
N2 - Laboratory guinea pigs raised at high altitude (HA, 3800. m) for up to 6. mo exhibit enhanced alveolar growth and remodeling (Hsia et al., 2005. Resp. Physiol. Neurobiol. 147, 105-115). To determine whether initial HA-induced structural enhancement persists following return to intermediate altitude (IA), we raised weanling guinea pigs at (a) HA for 11-12. mo, (b) IA (1200. m) for 11-12. mo, and (c) HA for 4 mo followed by IA for 7-8. mo (HA-to-IA). Morphometric analysis was performed under light and electron microscopy. Body weight and lung volume were similar among groups. Prolonged HA residence increased alveolar epithelium and interstitium volumes while reducing alveolar-capillary blood volume. The HA-induced gains in type-1 epithelium volume and alveolar surface area were no longer present following return to IA whereas volume increases in type-2 epithelium and interstitium and the reduction in alveolar duct volume persisted. Results demonstrate persistent augmentation of some but not all aspects of lung structure throughout prolonged HA residence, with partial reversibility following re-acclimatization to IA.
AB - Laboratory guinea pigs raised at high altitude (HA, 3800. m) for up to 6. mo exhibit enhanced alveolar growth and remodeling (Hsia et al., 2005. Resp. Physiol. Neurobiol. 147, 105-115). To determine whether initial HA-induced structural enhancement persists following return to intermediate altitude (IA), we raised weanling guinea pigs at (a) HA for 11-12. mo, (b) IA (1200. m) for 11-12. mo, and (c) HA for 4 mo followed by IA for 7-8. mo (HA-to-IA). Morphometric analysis was performed under light and electron microscopy. Body weight and lung volume were similar among groups. Prolonged HA residence increased alveolar epithelium and interstitium volumes while reducing alveolar-capillary blood volume. The HA-induced gains in type-1 epithelium volume and alveolar surface area were no longer present following return to IA whereas volume increases in type-2 epithelium and interstitium and the reduction in alveolar duct volume persisted. Results demonstrate persistent augmentation of some but not all aspects of lung structure throughout prolonged HA residence, with partial reversibility following re-acclimatization to IA.
KW - Alveolar duct
KW - Alveolar surface area
KW - Alveolar tissue volume
KW - Blood-gas diffusion barrier
KW - Chronic hypoxia
KW - Gas exchange
KW - Lung growth
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U2 - 10.1016/j.resp.2014.12.011
DO - 10.1016/j.resp.2014.12.011
M3 - Article
C2 - 25534146
AN - SCOPUS:84921498308
SN - 1569-9048
VL - 208
SP - 37
EP - 44
JO - Respiratory Physiology and Neurobiology
JF - Respiratory Physiology and Neurobiology
ER -