Key Laboratory of Developmental Genes and Human Disease, Ministry of Education, Nanjing 210009, China; Department of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Southeast University Medical School, Nanjing 210009, China.
Environ Toxicol Pharmacol. 2009 May;27(3):314-20. doi: 10.1016/j.etap.2008.11.011. Epub 2008 Dec 3.
The number of cell body or synapse made by Caenorhabditis elegans GABAergic neurons is constant during development. The neurotoxic effects of metal (Pb, Hg, Cu, Cd, Cr, and Mn) exposure on GABAergic motor neurons were investigated in C. elegans. Exposure to examined metals could not alter the position of GABA neurons, whereas exposure to high concentrations (75μM and 200μM) of metals caused noticeable axonal degeneration and neuronal loss in nerve cords, suggesting neurodegeneration will be induced by metal exposure to different degrees. In addition, exposure to Pb, Hg, Cu, and Cd at the low concentration (2.5μM) could also induce obviously neuronal loss. Moreover, exposure to high concentrations (75μM and/or 200μM) of most of examined metals significantly reduced the relative size and fluorescent intensities of AVL, RMEs, and RIS neurons. Therefore, the neurodegeneration and abnormal structures may be formed in GABAergic motor neurons after metal exposure, and the endpoint of neuronal loss will be useful for the neurotoxicity assessment from trace metal exposure.
秀丽隐杆线虫 GABA 能神经元的胞体或突触数量在发育过程中是恒定的。研究了金属（Pb、Hg、Cu、Cd、Cr 和 Mn）暴露对 GABA 能运动神经元的神经毒性作用。暴露于研究中的金属不能改变 GABA 神经元的位置，而暴露于高浓度（75μM 和 200μM）的金属会导致神经索中明显的轴突退化和神经元丧失，表明金属暴露会引起不同程度的神经退行性变。此外，低浓度（2.5μM）的 Pb、Hg、Cu 和 Cd 也会导致明显的神经元丧失。此外，暴露于大多数研究金属的高浓度（75μM 和/或 200μM）会显著降低 AVL、RMEs 和 RIS 神经元的相对大小和荧光强度。因此，金属暴露后 GABA 能运动神经元可能会发生神经退行性变和异常结构形成，神经元丧失的终点可用于评估痕量金属暴露的神经毒性。
