Lipids in Health and Disease (May 2020)

The imbalance in the aortic ceramide/sphingosine-1-phosphate rheostat in ovariectomized rats and the preventive effect of estrogen

  • Yao Li,
  • Wei Zhang,
  • Junlei Li,
  • Yanrong Sun,
  • Qiyue Yang,
  • Sinan Wang,
  • Xiaofeng Luo,
  • Wenjuan Wang,
  • Ke Wang,
  • Wenpei Bai,
  • Haicheng Zhang,
  • Lihua Qin

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12944-020-01279-7
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 19, no. 1
pp. 1 – 13

Abstract

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Abstract Background The prevalence of hypertension in young women is lower than that in age-matched men while the prevalence of hypertension in women is significantly increased after the age of 50 (menopause) and is greater than that in men. It is already known that sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) and ceramide regulate vascular tone with opposing effects. This study aimed to explore the effects of ovariectomy and estrogen supplementation on the ceramide/S1P rheostat of the aorta in rats, and to explore a potential mechanism for perimenopausal hypertension and a brand-new target for menopausal hormone therapy to protect vessels. Methods In total, 30 female adult SD rats were randomly divided into three groups: The sham operation group (SHAM), ovariectomy group (OVX) and ovariectomy plus estrogen group (OVX + E). After 4 weeks of treatment, the blood pressure (BP) of the rats was monitored by a noninvasive system; the sphingolipid content (e.g., ceramide and S1P) was detected by liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (LC-MS); the expression of the key enzymes involved in ceramide anabolism and catabolism was measured by real-time fluorescence quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR); and the expression of key enzymes and proteins in the sphingosine kinase 1/2 (SphK1/2)-S1P-S1P receptor 1/2/3 (S1P1/2/3) signaling pathway was detected by qPCR and western blotting. Results In the OVX group compared with the SHAM group, the systolic BP (SBP), diastolic BP (DBP) and pulse pressure (PP) increased significantly, especially the SBP and PP (P 0.05). Conclusions Ovariectomy resulted in the imbalance of the aortic ceramide/S1P rheostat in rats, which may be a potential mechanism underlying the increase in SBP and PP among perimenopausal women. Besides, the ceramide/S1P rheostat may be a novel mechanism by which estrogen protects vessels.

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