Chronic hypoxia upregulates connexin43 expression in rat carotid body and petrosal ganglion

Recent studies have demonstrated that oxygen-sensitive type I cells in the carotid body express the gap junction-forming protein connexin43 (Cx43). In the present study, we examined the hypothesis that chronic exposure to hypoxia increases Cx43 expression in type I cells as well as in chemoafferent neurons in the petrosal ganglion. Immunocytochemical studies in tissues from normal rats revealed diffuse and granular Cx43-like immunoreactivity in the cytoplasm of type I cells and dense punctate spots of immunoreactive product at the margins of type I cells and near the borders of chemosensory cell lobules. Cx43-like immunoreactivity was not detectable in petrosal ganglion neurons from normal animals. After a 2-wk exposure to hypobaric (380 Torr) hypoxia, Cx43 immunostaining was substantially enhanced in and around type I cells. Moreover, chronic hypoxia elicited the expression of Cx43-like immunoreactivity in the cytoplasm of afferent neurons throughout the petrosal ganglion. Quantitative RT-PCR studies indicate that chronic hypoxia evokes a substantial increase in Cx43 mRNA levels in the carotid body, along with a marked elevation of Cx43 expression in the petrosal ganglion. Increased Cx43 expression and gap junction formation in type I cells and sensory neurons may contribute to carotid body adaptation during sustained stimulation in extreme physiological conditions.