Neural phosphoproteomics of a chronic hypoxia model-Lymnaea stagnalis

Chronic hypoxia is a common clinical event that induces adaptive responses and can result in behavioral deterioration. The reduction of metabolic rate during hypoxia may limit overall protein phosphorylation owing to the lack of high energy phosphate. However, the hypoxia-induced regulation of phosphoproteins is poorly understood. Here, we characterized the CNS phosphoproteome of Lymnaea stagnalis, a freshwater snail that has been used as a model to study chronic hypoxia-induced neural depression. After hypoxia treatment for 4 days, the motor behavior of the snail was suppressed. Electrophysiological measurements from Pedal A (PeA) interneurons showed that hypoxia increased the frequency of spontaneous postsynaptic excitatory potentials (sEPSPs), but reduced the firing frequency, the amplitude, and the half-width duration (APD50) of spontaneous action potentials. Imaging with a fluorescent phosphate label, Pro-Q Diamond, revealed that the neuronal phosphoprotein level was reduced after the hypoxia treatment. The hypoxia-induced changes in the phosphoproteome of the central ganglia were quantified using one-dimensional gel-electrophoresis by comparing the fluorescence intensity ratio of phospholabeled phosphoproteins versus total proteins between the hypoxia and control groups. We analyzed 16 protein bands: eight showed decreased phosphorylation levels after hypoxia treatment, and eight did not change. Using mass spectrometry analysis and protein database matching we found three phosphoproteins that may be associated with chronic hypoxia-induced neuronal adaptive response of the snail. This is the first proteomic screening for neural phosphoproteins in chronic hypoxia.