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Coupling genome-wide transcriptomics and developmental toxicity profiles in zebrafish to characterize polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) hazard

ABSTRACT: Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are diverse environmental pollutants associated with adverse human health effects. Many studies focus on the carcinogenic effects of a limited number of PAHs and there is an increasing need to understand mechanisms of developmental toxicity of more varied yet environmentally relevant PAHs. A previous study characterized the developmental toxicity of 123 PAHs in zebrafish. Based on phenotypic responses ranging from complete inactivity to acute mortality, we classified these PAHs into eight bins, selected 16 representative PAHs, and exposed developing zebrafish to the concentration of each PAH that induced 80% phenotypic effect. We conducted RNA sequencing at 48 h post fertilization to identify gene expression changes as a result of PAH exposure.

ORGANISM(S): Danio rerio

PROVIDER: GSE156656 | GEO | 2020/08/22

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are ubiquitous in the environment as components of fossil fuels and by-products of combustion. These multi-ring chemicals differentially activate the Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor (AHR) in a structurally-dependent manner, and induce toxicity via both AHR-dependent and -independent mechanisms. PAH exposure is known to induce developmental malformations in zebrafish embryos, and recent studies have shown cardiac toxicity induced by compounds with low AHR affinity. Unraveling the potentially diverse molecular mechanisms of PAH toxicity is essential for understanding the hazard posed by complex PAH mixtures present in the environment. We analyzed transcriptional responses to PAH exposure in zebrafish embryos exposed to benz(a)anthracene (BAA), dibenzothiophene (DBT) and pyrene (PYR) at a concentration that induces developmental malformations by 120 hours post-fertilization (hpf). Whole genome microarray analysis of mRNA expression at 24 and 48 hpf identified genes that were differentially regulated over time and in response to the three PAH structures. PAH body burden was analyzed at these time points using GC-MS, and demonstrated differences in PAH uptake into the embryos. This was important for discerning dose-related differences from those that represented unique molecular mechanisms. While BAA misregulated the smallest number of transcripts, it caused strong induction of cyp1a and other genes known to be downstream of the AHR, which were not induced by the other two PAHs. Analysis of functional roles of misregulated genes and their predicted regulatory transcription factors also distinguished the BAA response from regulatory networks disrupted by DBT and PYR exposure. These results indicate that systems approaches can be used to classify the toxicity of PAHs based on the networks perturbed following exposure and may provide a path for unraveling the toxicity of complex PAH mixtures. Gene expression was measured in zebrafish embryos after exposure to PAHs. Embryos were batch-exposed in groups of 40 to 25 μM BAA, 25 μM DBT, 25 μM PYR or 1% DMSO vehicle control starting at 6 hpf and collected at 24 or 48 hpf. Four independent biological replicates were prepared for each treatment. The reference was a pool of zebrafish embryos exposed to DMSO control until 24 and 48 hpf.

Project description:There is increased emphasis on understanding cumulative risk from the combined effects of chemical and non-chemical stressors as it relates to public health. Recent animal studies have identified pulmonary inflammation as a possible modifier and risk factor for chemical toxicity in the lung after exposure to inhaled pollutants; however, little is known about specific interactions and potential mechanisms of action. In this study, primary human bronchial epithelial cells (HBEC) cultured in 3D at the air-liquid interface (ALI) are utilized as a physiologically relevant model to evaluate the effects of inflammation on toxicity of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a class of contaminants generated from incomplete combustion of fossil fuels. Normal HBEC were differentiated in the presence of IL-13 for 14 days to induce a profibrotic phenotype similar to asthma. Fully differentiated normal and asthmatic phenotype HBEC were treated with benzo[a]pyrene (BAP; 1 – 40 ug/mL) or 1% DMSO/PBS vehicle at the ALI for 48 hrs. Cells were evaluated for cytotoxicity, barrier integrity, and transcriptional biomarkers of chemical metabolism and inflammation by quantitative PCR. Cells with the asthmatic phenotype treated with BAP show some significant (p<0.05) increase in cytotoxicity and significantly (p<0.05) decreased barrier integrity compared to normal cells. Asthmatic phenotype cells also showed increase sensitivity to BAP metabolism compared to cells with the normal phenotype. Additionally, RNA sequencing data showed that a large number of genes were uniquely significantly expressed in cells with the induced asthmatic phenotype exposed to BAP. Future studies will further explore mechanisms of toxicity from global transcriptomics and investigate the role of microRNA in mediating mechanisms of toxicity and inflammation. These data are the first to evaluate the role of combined environmental factors associated with inflammation from pre-existing disease and PAH exposure on pulmonary toxicity in a physiologically relevant human in vitro model.

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Coupling genome-wide transcriptomics and developmental toxicity profiles in zebrafish to characterize polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) hazard

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