Cell and Molecular Biology Department, Grand Valley State University, Allendale, MI 49401, USA.
Annis Water Resources Institute, Grand Valley State University, Muskegon, MI 49441, USA.
Biomolecules. 2023 May 22;13(5):872. doi: 10.3390/biom13050872.
Membrane transporters and ion channels that play an indispensable role in metabolite trafficking have evolved to operate in Earth's gravity. Dysregulation of the transportome expression profile at normogravity not only affects homeostasis along with drug uptake and distribution but also plays a key role in the pathogenesis of diverse localized to systemic diseases including cancer. The profound physiological and biochemical perturbations experienced by astronauts during space expeditions are well-documented. However, there is a paucity of information on the effect of the space environment on the transportome profile at an organ level. Thus, the goal of this study was to analyze the effect of spaceflight on ion channels and membrane substrate transporter genes in the periparturient rat mammary gland. Comparative gene expression analysis revealed an upregulation ( < 0.01) of amino acid, Ca, K, Na, Zn, Cl, PO, glucose, citrate, pyruvate, succinate, cholesterol, and water transporter genes in rats exposed to spaceflight. Genes associated with the trafficking of proton-coupled amino acids, Mg, Fe, voltage-gated K-Na, cation-coupled chloride, as well as Na/Ca and ATP-Mg/P exchangers were suppressed ( < 0.01) in these spaceflight-exposed rats. These findings suggest that an altered transportome profile contributes to the metabolic modulations observed in the rats exposed to the space environment.
膜转运体和离子通道在代谢物转运中起着不可或缺的作用，它们已经进化到可以在地球引力下运作。在常重力下，转运体表达谱的失调不仅会影响内稳态、药物摄取和分布，还会在包括癌症在内的多种局部到全身疾病的发病机制中发挥关键作用。宇航员在太空飞行中经历的深刻生理和生化干扰已经有详细记录。然而，关于太空环境对器官水平转运体谱的影响的信息却很少。因此，本研究的目的是分析太空飞行对围产期大鼠乳腺中离子通道和膜底物转运体基因的影响。比较基因表达分析显示，暴露于太空飞行的大鼠中，氨基酸、Ca、K、Na、Zn、Cl、PO4、葡萄糖、柠檬酸、丙酮酸、琥珀酸、胆固醇和水转运体基因上调（<0.01）。与质子偶联氨基酸、Mg、Fe、电压门控 K-Na、阳离子偶联氯离子以及 Na/Ca 和 ATP-Mg/P 交换体转运有关的基因在这些暴露于太空飞行的大鼠中受到抑制（<0.01）。这些发现表明，转运体谱的改变导致了暴露于太空环境的大鼠中观察到的代谢调节。
