Adaptation of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha to hibernation in bats.

ABSTRACT: Hibernation is a survival mechanism in the winter for some animals. Fat preserved instead of glucose produced is the primary fuel during winter hibernation of mammals. Many genes involved in lipid metabolism are regulated by the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor alpha (PPAR?). The role of PPAR? in hibernation of mammals remains largely unknown. Using a multidisciplinary approach, we investigated whether PPAR? is adapted to hibernation in bats.Evolutionary analyses revealed that the ? value of Ppar? of the ancestral lineage of hibernating bats in both Yinpterochiroptera and Yangochiroptera was lower than that of non-hibernating bats in Yinpterochiroptera, suggesting that a higher selective pressure acts on Ppar? in hibernating bats. PPAR? expression was found to be increased at both mRNA and protein levels in distantly related bats (Rhinolophus ferrumequinum and Hipposideros armiger in Yinpterochiroptera and Myotis ricketti in Yangochiroptera) during their torpid episodes. Transcription factors such as FOXL1, NFYA, NFYB, SP1, TBP, and ERG were bioinformatically determined to have a higher binding affinity to the potential regulatory regions of Ppar? in hibernating than in non-hibernating mammals. Genome-wide bioinformatic analyses of 64 mammalian species showed that PPAR? has more potential target genes and higher binding affinity to these genes in hibernating than in non-hibernating mammals.We conclude that PPAR? is adapted to hibernation in bats based on the observations that Ppar? has a more stringent functional constraint in the ancestral lineage of hibernating bats and a higher level of expression in hibernating than in non-hibernating bats. We also conclude that PPAR? plays a very important role in hibernation as hibernators have more PPAR? target genes than non-hibernators, and PPAR? in hibernators has a higher binding affinity for its target genes than in non-hibernators.

SUBMITTER: Han Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4435907 | biostudies-literature | 2015

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature