Abstract
Background
Valproic acid (VPA) pharmacological mechanisms are related to the anti-inflammatory and anti-viral effects. VPA is a histone deacetylases inhibitor and serves a role in its immunomodulatory impacts. VPA has complex effects on immune cell’s mitochondrial metabolism. The SLC5A8 transporter of short fatty acids has an active role in regulating mitochondrial metabolism. The study aimed to investigate whether SLC5A8 expresses the sex-related difference and how SLC5A8 expression depends on gonadal hormones, VPA treatment, and NKCC1 expression in rat thymocytes.
Methods
Control groups and VPA-treated gonad-intact and gonadectomized Wistar male and female rats were investigated (
Results
The higher
Conclusion
VPA effect on the
Introduction
VPA is one of the most frequently prescribed anti-epileptic drugs.
1
VPA is an inhibitor of histone deacetylases (HDACs).
2
Studies raise the possibility of the therapeutic anti-viral potential of VPA.3,4 The virus replication and survival depend on the produced mitochondrial energy; thus, the anti-viral therapy tactics may involve medicine preparations that change energetic mitochondrial functions and activate anti-inflammatory mechanisms.
5
As a simple fatty acid, VPA is a substrate for the fatty acid β -oxidation pathway.
6
VPA bioactivation directs the metabolite 4-ene-VPA into the mitochondria, forming the 2,4-diene-VPA-CoA ester by β-oxidation.
7
VPA metabolites induce the significant decrease of pyruvate‐driven oxidative phosphorylation in mitochondria by conflict with pyruvate transport.
6
Such VPA effect could interfere with the short fatty acid transporter SLC5A8 (Solute carrier family-5 member-8) activity. The SLC5A8, transporting short fatty acids as a substrate for the
SLC5A8 acts as electrogenic sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl−)-dependent sodium-coupled transporter, transporting into the cell lactate, pyruvate, acetate, propionate, valerate, butyrate, and monocarboxylate drugs (dichloroacetate, nicotinate, salicylate, and 5-aminosalicylate) and ketone bodies.8–12 Research of adult male wild-type
The present study aimed at the following questions: (1) whether SLC5A8 transporter expresses the sex-related difference in rat thymocytes? (2) does VPA treatment change the SLC5A8 expression in thymocytes? (3) how SLC5A8 expression depends on gonadal hormones, VPA treatment, and NKCC1 expression in thymocytes? The answers to these questions are significant in dealing with personalized VPA therapy purposes.
Methods
Animals and treatment
Permission of the study was obtained from the State Food and Veterinary Service of Lithuania to use experimental animals for research (2017-01-02 No. G2-53). The preclinical and clinical research of pharmaceuticals regulatory guidelines indicates the importance of evaluating sex differences, stressing that medicine development should provide adequate information about the drug effects in both genders.
25
The VPA treatment effect on the thymus was started in the 4-to-5-weeks old Wistar rats: gonad-intact and gonadectomized controls and VPA-treated groups of both genders (
Thymus preparation
After treatment, the animals were euthanized in a 70% CO2 camera. The carotid arteries and the aorta were cut, and the animals exsanguinated to minimize the thymus contamination with red blood cells. After the euthanasia of the animals, their thymus was harvested, and the contaminating blood was removed by rinsing with Roswell Park Memorial Institute 1640 (RPMI-1640) medium (Biological Industries, Israel). The thymus surrounding connective tissue was removed, and the left lobe samples were stored in the RNAlaterRNA stabilization reagent (Qiagen, Germany) at −80°C until further RNA extraction and analysis.
Extraction of RNA from the thymus
The frozen tissue was ground in liquid nitrogen. According to the manufacturer’s instruction, the total RNA was extracted using the TRIzol Plus RNA Purification Kit (Life Technologies, USA). The RNA quality and concentration were assessed using a NanoDrop2000 spectrophotometer (Thermo Scientific, USA). The total RNA integrity was analyzed using the Agilent 2100 Bioanalyzer system (Agilent Technologies, CA) with an Agilent RNA 6000 Nano kit (Agilent Technologies, CA). RNA samples had the RNA integrity number (RIN) higher than 5. The samples of RNA were stored at −80°C until further analysis.
Determination of the Slc5a8 and Slc12a2 genes expression in thymocytes
RNA expression assays were performed for
Statistical analysis
The statistical analysis was performed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences, version 23.0 for Windows (IBM SPSS Statistics 23.0). The figures were performed using GraphPad Prism 7 and IBM SPSS Statistics 23.0 software. The normality assumption was conducted by the Shapiro–Wilk test. Differences between the two independent groups were evaluated using the nonparametric Mann–Whitney
Results
The VPA effect on Slc5a8 and Slc12a2 RNA expression in rat thymocytes
RNA expression of SLC5A8 cotransporter in the thymus of study groups.
a
b
c
d

Comparing the thymocytes
Delta threshold cycle (ΔCT) values correlation (
a
b
c
d
The VPA effect on the correlation between Slc5a8 and Slc12a2 RNA expression in rat thymocytes of study groups
The Correlation plots of the 
The gonad-intact females’ thymocytes showed a significantly strong correlation between
Ovariectomized VPA-treated females showed a significant correlation between
Discussion
Pharmacological impacts of VPA show the association with the therapeutic anti-viral7,27,28 and anti-inflammatory pathogenic mechanisms.
29
The immunomodulatory effect of VPA is related to the inhibition of class I and class II HDACs, which drives an increase in the acetylation of histones H2, H3, and H4, altering the gene expression related to immune cells activation.30–33 VPA represses the generation of pro-inflammatory factors such as NF-κB, IL-6, and TNF-α and prevents macrophages migration.
34
Our previous work reported that the 4 weeks of VPA treatment did not significantly impact thymus weight in the study gonad-intact and gonadectomized rat groups of both genders.
22
Others noted that the 8 weeks VPA treatment significantly reduced the lymph node and spleen weight and cellularity compared to control in MRL/lpr(−/−) mice females.
35
VPA suppresses T cell proliferation
The present study of the VPA effect on rat thymocyte SLC5A8 transporter expression identified differences concerning gender, sex hormones, and NKCC1 expression potential VPA gender-related effects on cell function. Our study revealed that gonad-intact male rat thymocytes express a significantly higher SLC5A8 RNA level than gonad-intact females; the research shows an insignificant increase of SLC5A8 RNA expression in gonadectomized males and female rat controls, with no sex-related difference. The VPA treatment caused an opposite effect on the SLC5A8 RNA gene expression in female and male rats’ thymocytes. In gonad-intact females, the VPA treatment increased 2.7-fold of
The SLC5A8 transporter function depends on NKCC1 cotransporter activity; its inhibition increases SLC5A8 activity and activates the mitochondrial function.20,21 The NKCC1 RNA expression in the gonad-intact male rat thymocytes is higher than in females. VPA downregulates NKCC1 expression in gonad-intact male rat thymocytes, and no VPA effect on the NKCC1 was found in castrated male, gonad-intact, and ovariectomized female rat thymocytes. 22 Our study shows the natural gender-related differences in the NKCC1 and SLC5A8 gene expression correlation in thymocytes. Such a biological gender-related relationship between SLC5A8 and NKCC1 gene expression differences disappeared in VPA-treated animals.
The SLC5A8 is a Na+-coupled and electrogenic transporter, able to concentrate short fatty acids into the cell: with a Na+ and substrate stoichiometry between 4:1 and 2:1. 40 The activity and expression of SLC5A8 and NKCC1 in the cell are related to the Na+ and Cl− ions transport into the cell; their intracellular and extracellular concentrations, which are sex-dependent, 41 and essential for immune-inflammatory, glycolytic processes. 42 A mice study shows that NKCC1 performs a novel role in acute lung inflammatory responses: a specific NKCC1 inhibition could benefit sepsis treatment. 43
By mitochondrial mechanisms, VPA inhibits HDACs activity,
31
inducing DNA demethylation and increase the
VPA inhibits Th1 and Th17 cells and related pro-inflammatory cytokines. 49 VPA polarizes macrophages from M1 to M2 phenotype, which cannot induce naïve CD4+ T cells differentiation into a Th1 profile, favoring a Th2 phenotype 50 by mitochondria affected immune cell metabolism changing from the down TCA cycle to β-oxidation. 51 VPA does not affect the viability and the activation of CD8+ T lymphocytes exposed to viral peptides, 30 increased CD4+ T cell level with no change in CD8+ T cell level. 52 HDACs inhibition by VPA alters the gene expression related to cell differentiation and apoptosis.33,36 In females, aging does not lead to T cell dysfunction, and older females generate strong T cell immunity; men aging leads to T cell dysfunction. 53
VPA inhibits the aerobic glycolysis in tumor cells by reducing glucose uptake and decreasing lactate and ATP production via lowering the levels of E2F transcription factor 1; VPA affects E2F1 binding to the promoter of glycolytic genes GPI and PGK1.
54
Such VPA impact on glycolysis shows a new therapeutic strategy in researching the VPA effect on immune cells. The expression of SLC5A8 in T cells may likely affect the immune response and be related to the viral disease progression. It is known that the decreased SLC5A8 expression is the risk factor for
Conclusions
Gonad-intact male rat thymocytes express a higher SLC5A8 RNA level than gonad-intact females. The effect of VPA treatment on the
Supplemental Material
sj-pdf-1-iji-10.1177_20587384211051954 – Supplemental Material for The effect of valproic acid on SLC5A8 expression in gonad-intact and gonadectomized rat thymocytes
Supplemental Material, sj-pdf-1-iji-10.1177_20587384211051954 for The effect of valproic acid on SLC5A8 expression in gonad-intact and gonadectomized rat thymocytes by Milda Juknevičienė, Ingrida Balnytė, Angelija Valančiūtė, Jūratė Stanevičiūtė, Kęstutis Sužiedėlis and Donatas Stakišaitis in International Journal of Immunopathology and Pharmacology
Footnotes
Declaration of conflicting interests
The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.
Funding
The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: The present study was funded by the Research Fund of the Lithuanian University of Health Sciences [No.V-31; 2019-12-18].
Ethics approval
Ethical approval for this study was obtained from the STATE FOOD and VETERINARY SERVICE of LITHUANIA (2017-01-02 No. G2-53).
Animal welfare
The present study followed international, national, and/or institutional guidelines for human animal treatment and complied with relevant legislation.
Supplemental Material
Supplemental material for this article is available online.
References
Supplementary Material
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