Department of Biology, University of Rochester, Rochester, NY, 14627, USA.
Department of Physiology and Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery of the First Affiliated Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, 301158, China.
Nat Commun. 2023 Dec 5;14(1):8054. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-43623-2.
Hyaluronic acid is a major component of extracellular matrix which plays an important role in development, cellular response to injury and inflammation, cell migration, and cancer. The naked mole-rat (Heterocephalus glaber) contains abundant high-molecular-mass hyaluronic acid in its tissues, which contributes to this species' cancer resistance and possibly to its longevity. Here we report that abundant high-molecular-mass hyaluronic acid is found in a wide range of subterranean mammalian species, but not in phylogenetically related aboveground species. These subterranean mammalian species accumulate abundant high-molecular-mass hyaluronic acid by regulating the expression of genes involved in hyaluronic acid degradation and synthesis and contain unique mutations in these genes. The abundant high-molecular-mass hyaluronic acid may benefit the adaptation to subterranean environment by increasing skin elasticity and protecting from oxidative stress due to hypoxic conditions. Our work suggests that high-molecular-mass hyaluronic acid has evolved with subterranean lifestyle.
透明质酸是细胞外基质的主要成分之一，在发育、细胞对损伤和炎症的反应、细胞迁移和癌症等方面发挥着重要作用。裸鼹鼠（Heterocephalus glaber）的组织中含有丰富的高分子量透明质酸，这有助于该物种的抗癌能力，也可能有助于其长寿。在这里，我们报告说，在广泛的地下哺乳动物物种中发现了丰富的高分子量透明质酸，但在系统发育上与之相关的地上物种中则没有。这些地下哺乳动物通过调节参与透明质酸降解和合成的基因的表达来积累丰富的高分子量透明质酸，并在这些基因中存在独特的突变。丰富的高分子量透明质酸可能通过增加皮肤弹性和防止由于缺氧引起的氧化应激，有益于对地下环境的适应。我们的工作表明，高分子量透明质酸是随着地下生活方式而进化的。
