Lin Ying-Chi, Wang Chia-Chi, Tung Chun-Wei
School of Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Ph.D. Program in Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
School of Pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Ph.D. Program in Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan; Institute of Environmental Engineering, National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan; National Environmental Health Research Center, National Health Research Institutes, Miaoli County, Taiwan.
Chem Biol Interact. 2014 Nov 5;223:38-44. doi: 10.1016/j.cbi.2014.09.004. Epub 2014 Sep 17.
Maleic acid is a multi-functional chemical widely applied in the manufacturing of polymer products including food packaging. However, the contamination of maleic acid in modified starch has raised the concerns about the effects of chronic exposure to maleic acid on human health. This study proposed a novel toxicogenomics approach for inferring functions, pathways and diseases potentially affected by maleic acid on humans by using known interactions between maleic acid and proteins. Neuronal signal transmission and cell metabolism were identified to be most influenced by maleic acid in this study. The top disease categories inferred to be associated with maleic acid were mental disorder, nervous system diseases, cardiovascular diseases, and cancers. The results from the in silico analysis showed that maleic acid could penetrate the blood-brain barrier to affect the nervous system. Several functions and pathways were further analyzed and identified to give insights into the mechanisms of maleic acid-associated diseases. The toxicogenomics approach may offer both a better understanding of the potential risks of maleic-acid exposure to humans and a direction for future toxicological investigation.
马来酸是一种多功能化学品，广泛应用于包括食品包装在内的聚合物产品制造中。然而，改性淀粉中马来酸的污染引发了人们对长期接触马来酸对人体健康影响的担忧。本研究提出了一种新的毒理基因组学方法，通过利用马来酸与蛋白质之间的已知相互作用，推断马来酸可能对人类产生影响的功能、途径和疾病。在本研究中，神经元信号传递和细胞代谢被确定为受马来酸影响最大的方面。推断与马来酸相关的顶级疾病类别为精神障碍、神经系统疾病、心血管疾病和癌症。计算机分析结果表明，马来酸可以穿透血脑屏障影响神经系统。对几种功能和途径进行了进一步分析和鉴定，以深入了解与马来酸相关疾病的机制。毒理基因组学方法可能有助于更好地理解马来酸暴露对人类的潜在风险，并为未来的毒理学研究提供方向。
