Mild hypothermia causes a shift in the alternative splicing of cold-inducible RNA-binding protein transcripts in Syrian hamsters.

Mild hypothermia causes a shift in the alternative splicing of cold-inducible RNA-binding protein transcripts in Syrian hamsters. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2019 Jun 12;: Authors: Horii Y, Shimaoka H, Horii K, Shiina T, Shimizu Y Abstract Cold shock proteins are thought to participate in the cold-tolerant nature of hibernating animals. We previously demonstrated that an alternative splicing may allow rapid induction of functional cold-inducible RNA-binding protein (CIRBP)in the hamster heart. The purpose of the present study was to determine the major cause ofthe alternative splicing in Syrian hamsters.RT-PCR analysis revealed thatCIRBPmRNA is constitutively expressed in the heart, brain, lung, liver and kidney of non-hibernating euthermic hamsters with severalalternative splicing variants. In contrast, the short variant containing an open reading frame for functional CIRBPwas dominantly foundin the hibernating animals. Keeping the animals in a cold and dark environment did notcause a shift in the alternative splicing. Induction of hypothermia by central administration of an adenosine A1-receptor agonist reproduced the shift in the splicing pattern. However, the agonist failed to shift the pattern when body temperature was kept at 37ºC, suggesting that central adenosine A1-receptors are not directly linked to the shift of the alternative splicing. Rapid reduction of body temperature to 10ºC by isoflurane anesthesia com...
Source: American Journal of Physiology. Regulatory, Integrative and Comparative Physiology - Category: Physiology Authors: Tags: Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol Source Type: research