Prolonged hypoxic stress increases adrenal cholesterol reserve in rats without causing adrenal hypertrophy.
1. It is known that, in rats, hypoxia stimulates adrenal steroidogenesis, but our understanding of the hypoxic effect on the glandular parameters remains incomplete. 2. Adrenals were collected and analysed from rats that had been exposed to hypoxic conditions for 3 weeks. 3. The results reveal increased adrenal concentrations of corticosterone, free cholesterol and total cholesterol without a change in glandular weight and protein concentration. The increased total cholesterol is primarily associated with enriched cholesteryl adrenate (CE22: 4), cholesteryl arachidonate (CE20: 4) and cholesteryl oleate (CE18: 1).
Cheng
B
B
Biochemistry Department, Kuwait University Faculty of Medicine, Kuwait. behling@hsc.kuniv.edu
Abraham
S
S
Thakkar
J
J
Kowal
J
J
D000302:Adrenal Cortex / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D000818:Animals; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000378:metabolism*; D003345:Corticosterone / Q000378:metabolism; D006984:Hypertrophy / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism; D000860:Hypoxia / Q000378:metabolism*; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D013997:Time Factors
D002784:Cholesterol; D003345:Corticosterone