Social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissue

Previous observations suggest that strong social stressors, that is, repeated social defeat, could initiate functional changes in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in social mammals. Here, we examine whether exposure to such stress in rats causes persistent alterations in gene expression...

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Main Authors: Terese Elisabeth Zylla, Junbai Wang, Johannes Gjerstad
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-09-01
Series:Endocrine and Metabolic Science
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666396124000323
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author Terese Elisabeth Zylla
Junbai Wang
Johannes Gjerstad
author_facet Terese Elisabeth Zylla
Junbai Wang
Johannes Gjerstad
author_sort Terese Elisabeth Zylla
collection DOAJ
description Previous observations suggest that strong social stressors, that is, repeated social defeat, could initiate functional changes in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in social mammals. Here, we examine whether exposure to such stress in rats causes persistent alterations in gene expression associated with hypo-and/or hyper-methylation in the adrenal tissue, i.e., the interface between the HPA axis and the circulating hormones. Our integrated analyses of RNA-sequencing (RNAseq) and whole genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS), suggested that adrenal mitochondrial membrane transport necessary for corticosterone (CORT) synthesis, are affected by repeated social defeat. The increased CORT levels observed in blood in the stressed rats further suggested that corticosterone synthesis might be influenced by this form of social stress. The cellular mechanisms underlying these changes, i.e., the enriched gene ontology (GO)-terms and increased levels of circulating CORT, remain to be investigated.
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spelling doaj-art-2a8f20cdf3d24e0dbd049e811d19bd712025-08-20T02:20:57ZengElsevierEndocrine and Metabolic Science2666-39612024-09-011610018810.1016/j.endmts.2024.100188Social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissueTerese Elisabeth Zylla0Junbai Wang1Johannes Gjerstad2Department of Research and Development in Mental Health, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway; National Institute of Occupational Health, Oslo, NorwayDepartment of Clinical Molecular Biology (EpiGen), University of Oslo and Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, NorwayDepartment of Research and Development in Mental Health, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway; National Institute of Occupational Health, Oslo, Norway; Kristiania University College, Department of Psychology, Pedagogy and Law, Oslo, Norway; Corresponding author at: Department of Research and Development in Mental Health, Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway.Previous observations suggest that strong social stressors, that is, repeated social defeat, could initiate functional changes in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis in social mammals. Here, we examine whether exposure to such stress in rats causes persistent alterations in gene expression associated with hypo-and/or hyper-methylation in the adrenal tissue, i.e., the interface between the HPA axis and the circulating hormones. Our integrated analyses of RNA-sequencing (RNAseq) and whole genome bisulfite sequencing (WGBS), suggested that adrenal mitochondrial membrane transport necessary for corticosterone (CORT) synthesis, are affected by repeated social defeat. The increased CORT levels observed in blood in the stressed rats further suggested that corticosterone synthesis might be influenced by this form of social stress. The cellular mechanisms underlying these changes, i.e., the enriched gene ontology (GO)-terms and increased levels of circulating CORT, remain to be investigated.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666396124000323StressAdrenal glandHPA-axisRNAseqWGBSMitochondria
spellingShingle Terese Elisabeth Zylla
Junbai Wang
Johannes Gjerstad
Social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissue
Endocrine and Metabolic Science
Stress
Adrenal gland
HPA-axis
RNAseq
WGBS
Mitochondria
title Social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissue
title_full Social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissue
title_fullStr Social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissue
title_full_unstemmed Social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissue
title_short Social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissue
title_sort social stress in rats promotes transcriptional mitochondrial changes of the adrenal tissue
topic Stress
Adrenal gland
HPA-axis
RNAseq
WGBS
Mitochondria
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666396124000323
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