Carey, Deborah, Thanaj, Marjola, Davies, Thomas, Gilbert-Kawai, Edward, Mitchell, Kay, Levett, Denny, Mythen, Michael G., Grocott, Michael, Martin, Daniel S, Chipperfield, Andrew and Clough, Geraldine (2019) Enhanced flow-motion complexity of skin microvascular perfusion in Sherpas and lowlanders during ascent to high altitude. Scientific Reports, 9, 1-12. (doi:10.1038/s41598-019-50774-0).
Abstract
An increased and more effective microvascular perfusion is postulated to play a key role in the physiological adaptation of Sherpa highlanders to the hypobaric hypoxia encountered at high altitude. To investigate this, we used Lempel-Ziv complexity (LZC) analysis to explore the spatiotemporal dynamics of the variability of the skin microvascular blood flux (BF) signals measured at the forearm and finger, in 32 lowlanders (LL) and 46 Sherpa highlanders (SH) during the Xtreme Everest 2 expedition. Measurements were made at baseline (BL) (LL: London 35m; SH: Kathmandu 1300m) and at Everest base camp (LL and SH: EBC 5,300m). We found that BF signal content increased with ascent to EBC in both SH and LL. At both altitudes, LZC of the BF signals was significantly higher in SH, and was related to local slow-wave flow-motion activity over multiple spatial and temporal scales. In SH, BF LZC was also positively associated with LZC of the simultaneously measured tissue oxygenation signals. These data provide robust mechanistic information of microvascular network functionality and flexibility during hypoxic exposure on ascent to high altitude. They demonstrate the importance of a sustained heterogeneity of network perfusion, associated with local vaso-control mechanisms, to effective tissue oxygenation during hypobaric hypoxia.
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- Current Faculties > Faculty of Medicine > Clinical and Experimental Sciences > Tissue Infection and Repair
Clinical and Experimental Sciences > Tissue Infection and Repair - Current Faculties > Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences
- Faculties (pre 2018 reorg) > Faculty of Natural and Environmental Sciences (pre 2018 reorg) > Institute for Life Sciences (pre 2018 reorg)
Current Faculties > Faculty of Environmental and Life Sciences > Institute for Life Sciences > Institute for Life Sciences (pre 2018 reorg)
Institute for Life Sciences > Institute for Life Sciences (pre 2018 reorg) - Current Faculties > Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences > School of Engineering > Mechanical Engineering > Bioengineering Group
Mechanical Engineering > Bioengineering Group - Current Faculties > Faculty of Medicine > Clinical and Experimental Sciences
Clinical and Experimental Sciences
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