Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China.
Department of Pediatric Cardiology, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China; Department of Children's Cardiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital and Yuying Children's Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, Wenzhou, China.
Toxicology. 2024 Jan;501:153705. doi: 10.1016/j.tox.2023.153705. Epub 2023 Dec 7.
Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are common air pollutants and water contaminants. We previously found maternal exposure to VOCs was associated with offspring congenital heart disease (CHD). However, little information is available about the effects of VOCs on cardiovascular development at embryonic stage and the underlying mechanism remains unclear. In this study, we aimed to investigate the effects of a mixture of six VOCs on cardiovascular development in zebrafish embryos. Embryos were exposed to different concentrations of VOCs mixture (32 mg/L, 64 mg/L and 128 mg/L) for 96 h, cardiovascular abnormalities including elongated heart shape, increased distance between sinus venosus and bulbus arteriosus, slowed circulation and altered heart rate were observed in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Meanwhile, VOCs exposure increased global DNA methylation levels in embryos. Analysis identified hundreds of differentially methylated sites and the enrichment of differentially methylated sites on cardiovascular development. Two differentially methylated-associated genes involved in MAPK pathway, hgfa and ntrk1, were identified to be the potential genes mediating the effects of VOCs. By enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, altered human serum hgf and ntrk1 levels were detected in abnormal pregnancies exposed to higher VOCs levels with fetal CHD. For the first time, our study revealed exposure to VOCs induced severe cardiovascular abnormalities in zebrafish embryos. The toxicity might result from alterations in DNA methylation and corresponding expression levels of genes involved in MAPK pathway. Our study provides important information for the risk of VOCs exposure on embryonic cardiovascular development.
挥发性有机化合物(VOCs)是常见的空气污染物和水污染物质。我们之前发现母体接触 VOCs 与后代先天性心脏病(CHD)有关。然而,关于 VOCs 对胚胎期心血管发育的影响以及潜在机制的信息较少。在这项研究中,我们旨在研究六种 VOC 混合物对斑马鱼胚胎心血管发育的影响。胚胎暴露于不同浓度的 VOC 混合物(32mg/L、64mg/L 和 128mg/L)96 小时后,观察到心血管异常,包括心脏形状拉长、窦房结和动脉球之间距离增加、循环减慢和心率改变,呈剂量和时间依赖性。同时,VOC 暴露增加了胚胎中的全基因组 DNA 甲基化水平。分析鉴定了数百个差异甲基化位点,以及差异甲基化位点在心血管发育中的富集。鉴定出两个参与 MAPK 通路的差异甲基化相关基因 hgfa 和 ntrk1,它们可能是介导 VOCs 作用的潜在基因。通过酶联免疫吸附试验,在接触更高 VOC 水平且胎儿 CHD 的异常妊娠中检测到改变的人血清 hgf 和 ntrk1 水平。我们的研究首次揭示了暴露于 VOCs 会导致斑马鱼胚胎出现严重的心血管异常。这种毒性可能是由于 DNA 甲基化的改变以及参与 MAPK 通路的基因的相应表达水平的改变所致。我们的研究为 VOCs 暴露对胚胎心血管发育的风险提供了重要信息。