Chronic sleep fragmentation reduces left ventricular contractile function and alters gene expression related to innate immune response and circadian rhythm in the mouse heart

Abstract

Sleep disorders have emerged as a widespread public health concern, primarily due to their association with an increased risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. Our previous research indicated a potential direct impact of insufficient sleep duration on cardiac remodeling in children and adolescents. Nevertheless, the underlying mechanisms behind the link between sleep fragmentation (SF) and cardiac abnormalities remain unclear. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of SF interventions at various life stages on cardiac structure and function, as well as to identify genes associated with SF-induced cardiac dysfunction. To achieve this, we established mouse models of chronic SF and two-week sleep recovery (SR). Our results revealed that chronic SF significantly compromised left ventricular contractile function across different life stages, leading to alterations in cardiac structure and ventricular remodeling, particularly during early life stages. Moreover, microarray analysis of mouse heart tissue identified two significant modules and nine hub genes (Ddx60, Irf9, Oasl2, Rnf213, Cmpk2, Stat2, Parp14, Gbp3, and Herc6) through protein-protein interaction analysis. Notably, the interactome predominantly involved innate immune responses. Importantly, all hub genes lost significance following SR. The second module primarily consisted of circadian clock genes, and real-time PCR validation demonstrated significant upregulation of Arntl, Dbp, and Cry1 after SF, while subsequent SR restored normal Arntl expression. Furthermore, the expression levels of four hub genes (Ddx60, Irf9, Oasl2, and Cmpk2) and three circadian clock genes (Arntl, Dbp, and Cry1) exhibited correlations with structural and functional echocardiographic parameters. Overall, our findings suggest that SF impairs left ventricular contractile function and ventricular remodeling during early life stages, and this may be mediated by modulation of the innate immune response and circadian rhythm. Importantly, our findings suggest that a short period of SR can alleviate the detrimental effects of SF on the cardiac immune response, while the influence of SF on circadian rhythm appears to be more persistent. These findings underscore the importance of good sleep for maintaining cardiac health, particularly during early life stages.

Keywords: Cardiac function; Gene expression; Heart; Microarray; Sleep fragmentation.