Comparative features of the skin and lung fibroblasts cytoskeleton structure in rats of different ages

Abstract

In the article comparative analysis of the changes in the intensity of the Actb, Actg1, Tubb1, and Nexn genes expression and the content of their products – marker cytoskeleton proteins – β- and γ-actin, tubulin and nexilin in cultures of lungs and skin fibroblasts of rats aged 0.5, 1, 3 and 24 months has been carried out. It has been shown that the dynamics of expression intensity of the investigated genes and the content of their products has both age and organ dependence. In fibroblasts culture of both organs the dependence of the level of β- and γ actin expression on the age of donor animals is qualitatively similar and represents curves with maxima. However, there are their age features – the maximum expression of genes and the content of actin in the culture of lung fibroblasts corresponds to a group of animal donors 3 months old, and in the culture of skin fibroblasts – 1 month. After reaching the maximums, both indicators significantly reduced with a further increase in the age of the animal. This decrease is more pronounced in the culture of skin fibroblasts. In this case, the ratio of the level of expression and the content of β- and γ-actin in the culture of fibroblasts of the lung and skin doesn’t depend on the age of the animals. The opposite direction between changes in the expression of tubulin and nexilin genes and their content in cell cultures has been shown. However, in general, the age-related changes in the content of these proteins in cell cultures from both organs correlate with a change in the content of actin. The observed changes in the expression and content of the cytoskeleton marker proteins studied indicate the age and organ features of the functional properties of fibroblasts of the lungs and skin.