| Objective To investigate the effects of different stages of hypoxia exposure on RANKL/NF-κB/NFATc1
pathway and bone metabolism in mice. Methods A total of 48 SPF C57BL/6J male mice were randomly divided into hypoxia group (H group) and control group (Cgroup), 24 in each group. The mice in the hypoxia group were constructed in a low-pressure oxygen chamber. The hypoxia model was further divided into four subgroups H1, H5, H14, and H28 in a time-dependent manner, and the control groups C1, C5, C14, and C28 were set for each time period. The body weight changes of mice in each group were observed and recorded. The levels of IL-6, TNF-a, PINP and CTX-I were detected by ELISA.HE staining was used to observe the pathological changes of bone tissue. The expression of osteoclast differentiation genes including ACP5, CTSK and MMP-9 was detected by qRT-PCR. Western Blot was used to detect the expression of HIF-1a, RANKL, NF-κB and NFATc1 proteins. Results The body weightof mice in the hypoxia group was lower than that in the control group (P<0.05), and the body weight ofmice exposed to hypoxia for 1 day, 5 days, 14 days and 28 days decreased by 7.27 %, 8.67 %, 7.32 % and 18.78 %, respectively. After 14 days of hypoxia exposure, the number and volume of trabecular bonedecreased, and the connection was sparse. After 28 days, this change further increased. Hypoxia exposure increased the expression of HIF-1a, RANKL, NF-κB and NFATc1 proteins. Compared with the control group, the expression of H5 and H28 proteins was more significant (P<0.05). Hypoxia promoted the expression of ACP5, CTSK and MMP-9 mRNA, and the H14 and H28 groups were higher than the C14and C28 groups (P<0.05). Hypoxia exposure increased the levels of IL-6, TNF-a, PINP and CTX-I. Thelevels of IL-6 and TNF-a in hypoxia group were higher than those in control group (P<0.05). The levels of PINP in H5, H14 and H28 groups were higher than those in C5, C14 and C28 groups (P<0.05). The levels of CTX-I in H5 and H28 groups were higher than those in C5 and C28 groups (P<0.05). Conclusion Under the simulated altitude of 6 000 m, hypoxia exposure reduced the stress consumption of mice, and promoted bone metabolism and bone loss by up-regulating RANKL/NF-κB/NFATc1 signaling pathway and promoting inflammation. |