Chronic intermittent hypoxia disturbs insulin secretion and causes pancreatic injury via the MAPK signaling pathway

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a breathing disorder during sleep, with a most prominent character of chronic intermittent hypoxia (CIH), which induces the generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) that damages multiple tissues and causes metabolic disorders. In this study, we established a rat model of varying OSA with different grades of CIH (12.5% O2, 10% O2, 7.5% O2, and 5% O2) for 12 weeks, and found that CIH stimulated insulin secretion, reduced the insulin:proinsulin ratio in pancreatic tissue, and caused pancreatic tissue lesions and cell apoptosis in a dose-dependent manner. Moreover, CIH promoted the production of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-1β and IL-6, and activated mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) family members, extracellular regulated protein kinase (ERK), c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), and P38, depending on the O2 concentration. In summary, CIH disturbed insulin secretion, and caused inflammation, lesions, and cell apoptosis in pancreatic tissue via the MAPK s...