Preprint Article Version 1 Preserved in Portico This version is not peer-reviewed

Spaceflight and Microgravity-dependent Alteration of Mast cell Population and Protease Expression in Digestive Organs of Mongolian Gerbils

Dmitri Atiakshin
ORCID logo ,
Andrey Kostin
,
Viktoriya Shishkina
ORCID logo ,
Alexandra Burtseva
,
Anastasia Buravleva
,
Artem Volodkin
,
Daniel Elieh-Ali Komi
,
Igor Buchwalow
* ORCID logo ,
Markus Tiemann
Version 1 : Received: 10 August 2023 / Approved: 11 August 2023 / Online: 11 August 2023 (04:54:59 CEST)

A peer-reviewed article of this Preprint also exists.

Atiakshin, D.; Kostin, A.; Shishkina, V.; Burtseva, A.; Buravleva, A.; Volodkin, A.; Elieh-Ali-Komi, D.; Buchwalow, I.; Tiemann, M. Space-Flight- and Microgravity-Dependent Alteration of Mast Cell Population and Protease Expression in Digestive Organs of Mongolian Gerbils. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24, 13604. Atiakshin, D.; Kostin, A.; Shishkina, V.; Burtseva, A.; Buravleva, A.; Volodkin, A.; Elieh-Ali-Komi, D.; Buchwalow, I.; Tiemann, M. Space-Flight- and Microgravity-Dependent Alteration of Mast Cell Population and Protease Expression in Digestive Organs of Mongolian Gerbils. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24, 13604.

Abstract

Abstract: Mast cell (MC) specific proteases are of particular interest for space biology and medicine due to their biological activity in regulating targets of a specific tissue microenvironment. MC tryptase and chymase obtain the ability to remodel connective tissue through direct and indirect mechanisms. Yet, MC specific protease expression under space flight conditions has not been adequately investigated. Using immunohistochemical stainings, we analyzed in this study the protease profile of the jejunal, gastric and hepatic MC populations in three groups of Mongolian gerbils - vivarium control, synchronous experiment, and 12-day orbital flight on the Foton-M3 spacecraft, - and in two groups - vivarium control and anti-orthostatic suspension - included in the experiment simulating effects of weightlessness in the ground-based conditions. After a space flight, there was a decreased number of MCs in the studied organs combined with an increased proportion of chymase-positive MCs and MCs with a simultaneous content of tryptase and chymase; the secretion of specific proteases into the extracellular matrix increased. These changes in the expression of proteases were observed both in the mucosal and connective tissue MC subpopulations of the stomach and jejunum. Notably, the relative content of tryptase-positive MCs in the studied organs of the digestive system decreased. Space flight conditions simulated in the synchronous experiment caused no similar significant changes in the protease profile of MC populations. The space flight conditions resulted in an increased chymase expression combined with a decreased total number of protease-positive MCs apparently due to participating in the processes of extracellular matrix remodeling and regulating the state of the cardiovascular system.

Keywords

Space Flight; Mast Cells; Tryptase; Chymase; Mongolian Gerbils; the Digestive System

Subject

Biology and Life Sciences, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

Copyright: This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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