Abstract: To explore the molecular mechanisms underlying oxygen-dependent regulation of skeletal muscle adaptations, eight Thoroughbred horses performed 2 min of exercise at a velocity corresponding to 95% maximal O2 uptake under a normoxic condition, while using inspired O2 levels of 0.21 (normoxia), 0.26 (hyperoxia) or 0.16 (hypoxia). At the end of the exercise, arterial O2 saturation was significantly higher with hyperoxia and lower with hypoxia than with normoxia. However, no significant difference in plasma lactate or muscle glycogen concentrations was observed across the O2 conditions. A metabolomic analysis showed that muscle metabolite concentrations involved in glycolysis and the tricarboxylic acid cycle significantly changed in response to exercise but did not significantly differ across the O2 conditions. RNA-sequencing data showed that fewer genes were significantly altered by acute exercise in hyperoxia (upregulated: 523; downregulated: 116) and hypoxia (upregulated: 857; downregulated: 320) compared with normoxia (upregulated: 1628, downregulated: 924). Among them, numerous genes, including well-known exercise-responsive genes, such as NR4A3, PPARGC1A, PDK4 and VEGFA, were altered following exercise, irrespective of the O2 environment. Hyperoxic exercise induced responses of genes related to lysosomal activity, such as M6PR and CTNS, whereas hypoxic exercise triggered hypoxia-responsive gene expression, including PIK3R1, THPO and AKAP1. These findings suggest that arterial O2 availability does not necessarily alter global metabolic or transcriptomic response following a single exercise bout in horses. However, inspired O2 fraction-specific gene responses may play roles in long-term skeletal muscle adaptations and could contribute to the development of optimized training strategies for improved well-being and performance.
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Overview
This study examined how different oxygen levels during intense exercise affect the molecular responses in equine skeletal muscle.
Researchers found that oxygen availability influenced gene expression patterns but did not significantly change metabolic responses immediately after exercise.
Study Purpose
To understand how varying oxygen levels (normoxia, hyperoxia, hypoxia) affect molecular mechanisms underlying skeletal muscle adaptation during acute exercise in horses.
To explore oxygen-dependent regulation of metabolism and gene expression following short bouts of high-intensity exercise.
Methodology
Subjects: Eight Thoroughbred horses were used in the study.
Exercise Protocol: Each horse performed 2 minutes of exercise at 95% of their maximal oxygen uptake velocity.
Oxygen Conditions:
Normoxia: Inspired O2 fraction of 0.21 (normal air).
Hyperoxia: Inspired O2 fraction of 0.26 (increased oxygen).
Hypoxia: Inspired O2 fraction of 0.16 (reduced oxygen).
Arterial oxygen availability during acute exercise does not significantly affect the immediate metabolic response in equine skeletal muscle.
Gene expression responses are influenced by oxygen levels, showing distinct patterns under hyperoxia and hypoxia conditions.
The oxygen level-specific gene responses might contribute to long-term muscle adaptations with repeated training under altered oxygen conditions.
Knowledge of these molecular adaptations could help develop optimized training regimes to enhance horse performance and well-being by manipulating inspired oxygen levels.
Conclusion
While short-term metabolic effects of exercise are not markedly affected by oxygen availability, oxygen-dependent transcriptomic changes occur in skeletal muscle.
These findings support the idea that manipulating oxygen levels during training could customize molecular adaptations in horses.
Future studies should investigate how these gene expression changes translate into physiological adaptations and performance improvements over longer training periods.
Cite This Article
APA
Takahashi K, Mukai K, Takahashi Y, Ebisuda Y, Sugiyama F, Hatta H, Kitaoka Y.
(2025).
Effects of hypoxia and hyperoxia on exercise-induced metabolomic and transcriptomic profiles in equine skeletal muscle.
J Exp Biol, 228(24), jeb250956.
https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.250956
Department of Sports Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 153-8902, Japan.
Mukai, Kazutaka
Sports Science Division, Equine Research Institute, Japan Racing Association, Tochigi 329-0412, Japan.
Takahashi, Yuji
Sports Science Division, Equine Research Institute, Japan Racing Association, Tochigi 329-0412, Japan.
Ebisuda, Yusaku
Sports Science Division, Equine Research Institute, Japan Racing Association, Tochigi 329-0412, Japan.
Sugiyama, Fumi
Sports Science Division, Equine Research Institute, Japan Racing Association, Tochigi 329-0412, Japan.
Hatta, Hideo
Department of Sports Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo 153-8902, Japan.
Kitaoka, Yu
Department of Human Sciences, Kanagawa University, Kanagawa 221-8686, Japan.
MeSH Terms
Animals
Horses / physiology
Horses / genetics
Muscle, Skeletal / metabolism
Muscle, Skeletal / physiology
Physical Conditioning, Animal
Transcriptome
Oxygen / metabolism
Hypoxia / metabolism
Male
Metabolome
Hyperoxia / metabolism
Female
Grant Funding
20H04071 / Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
24K02812 / Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
21K11459 / Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
21K21249 / Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
23K16718 / Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
Kanagawa University
Conflict of Interest Statement
Competing interests The authors declare no competing or financial interests.
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