Intermittent hypoxia impairs pharyngeal dilator muscle function in male but not female rats

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Abstract

Upper airway muscle dysfunction is implicated in obstructive sleep apnoea syndrome (OSAS), a common respiratory disorder associated with recurrent hypoxaemia. The prevalence of OSAS is higher in males than females. We tested the hypothesis that sex differences exist in the effects of intermittent hypoxia on upper airway muscle function. Adult Wistar rats were exposed to intermittent hypoxia (IH, 90s air/90s N2; 5% O2 at nadir) or sham treatment for 8 hours/day for 9 days. Following treatments, animals were killed humanely and isometric contractile properties of the sternohyoid (SH) muscle were examined at 35OC in vitro. Force-frequency relationship was determined at stimulus frequencies ranging 10-100Hz. In male rats, SH peak force was decreased in IH-treated male rats [22.7 ± 0.8 vs. 15.9 ± 0.9 N/cm2, sham (n = 8) vs. IH (n = 8), p < 0.001 ANOVA]. Conversely, in female rats, IH treatment had no effect on SH peak force [21.0 ± 1.2 vs. 19.8 ± 0.8 N/cm2, sham (n = 8) vs. IH (n = 8), p > 0.05 ANOVA]. We conclude that IH-induced impairment of pharyngeal dilator muscle performance may contribute to OSAS.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationNew Frontiers in Respiratory Control
Subtitle of host publicationXIth Annual Oxford Conference on Modeling and Control of Breathing
EditorsIkuo Homma, Hiroshi Onimaru, Yoshinosuke Fukuchi
Pages285-287
Number of pages3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2010
Externally publishedYes

Publication series

NameAdvances in Experimental Medicine and Biology
Volume669
ISSN (Print)0065-2598

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