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Neuroglobin is upregulated by hypoxia and anoxia in the brain of the anoxia‐tolerant turtle Trachemys scripta
Author(s) -
Nayak Gauri Hari,
Milton Sarah L,
Prentice Howard M
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.21.6.a924-b
Subject(s) - neuroglobin , hypoxia (environmental) , turtle (robot) , biology , downregulation and upregulation , scavenger , reactive oxygen species , messenger rna , microbiology and biotechnology , oxygen , endocrinology , medicine , chemistry , hemoglobin , biochemistry , gene , globin , ecology , organic chemistry , radical
The neural heme protein neuroglobin has been proposed to have a variety of functions including those of oxygen carrier, oxygen sensor, scavenger of reactive oxygen species and neuroprotectant molecule. Because the brain of the freshwater turtle is anoxia tolerant this model provides a unique opportunity to examine the regulation and roles of neuroglobin. We demonstrate here oxygen dependent regulation of neuroglobin mRNA and protein expression in the anoxia tolerant turtle brain. Turtles were exposed to normoxia (4 hr), hypoxia (4 hr at 5% O2), complete anoxia (1 and 4 hr) and anoxia‐reoxygenation. Whole brain expression of neuroglobin mRNA and protein are strongly upregulated by hypoxia and post‐anoxia re‐oxygenation but only modestly increased under anoxia. We propose that these responses to altered oxygen availability point to a hypoxia specific role for neuroglobin, perhaps as an ROS scavenger.