Melatonin attenuates chronic intermittent hypoxia-induced intestinal barrier dysfunction in mice

作者：Xinyi Li, Fan Wang, Zhenfei Gao, Weijun Huang, Xiaoman Zhang, Feng Liu, Hongliang Yi, Jian Guan, Xiaolin Wu, Huajun Xu, Shankai Yin · 发表于：Microbiological Research · 年份：2023 · DOI：10.1016/j.micres.2023.127480 · 被引用次数：29 · 研究领域：Gut microbiota and health、Barrier Structure and Function Studies、High Altitude and Hypoxia

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH) triggers subclinical intestinal barrier disruption prior to systemic low-grade inflammation. Increasing evidence suggests therapeutic effects of melatonin on systemic inflammation and gut microbiota remodelling. However, whether and how melatonin alleviates CIH-induced intestinal barrier dysfunction remains unclear. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH: C57BL/6 J mice and Caco-2 cell line were treated. We evaluated gut barrier function spectrophotometrically using fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC)-labelled dextran. Immunohistochemical and immunofluorescent staining were used to detect morphological changes in the mechanical barrier. Western blotting (WB) and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) revealed the expression of tight junctions, signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) levels. 16 S rRNA analysis of the colonic contents microflora. Flow cytometry was used to detect cytokines and Th17 cells with and without melatonin supplementation. KEY RESULTS: We found that CIH could induce colonic mucosal injury, including reduction in the number of goblet cells and decrease the expression of intestinal tight junction proteins. CIH could decrease the abundance of the beneficial genera Clostridium, Akkermansia, and Bacteroides, while increasing the abundance of the pathogenic genera Desulfovibrio and Bifidobacterium. Finally, CIH facilitated Th17 differentiation via the phosphorylation of signal tran...