Shu Yilin, Zhang Liyuan, He Jun, Tang Lizhu, Wu Yuting, Hong Pei, Wu Hailong, Chen Lianguo
State Key Laboratory of Freshwater Ecology and Biotechnology, Institute of Hydrobiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan 430072, China.
Collaborative Innovation Center of Recovery and Reconstruction of Degraded Ecosystem in Wanjiang Basin Co-founded by Anhui Province and Ministry of Education, School of Ecology and Environment, Anhui Normal University, Wuhu 241002, China.
Chem Res Toxicol. 2025 Mar 17;38(3):478-487. doi: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.4c00498. Epub 2025 Feb 21.
It is uncertain whether exposure to environmental concentrations of perfluorobutanesulfonate (PFBS) disrupts the reproductive endocrine system in amphibian tadpoles. In this study, tadpoles () in G26 stage were treated with different levels of PFBS (0, 1, 3, and 10 μg/L) for 60 days to investigate whether and how PFBS affects the reproductive endocrine system and gonadal development in tadpoles. Tadpole testes exhibited structural damage to germ cells and significantly fewer spermatogonia following PFBS exposure, but the sex ratio remained unaffected. Further, PFBS exposure downregulated transcripts of genes associated with ovarian ( and ) and testicular ( and ) development in tadpoles. Encoding gonadotropin hormone genes were transcriptionally upregulated in the pituitary, and serum gonadotropins (FSH and LH) were elevated. Genes related to testosterone synthesis were transcriptionally upregulated, and serum testosterone concentrations were raised. The transcription of the gene, which is involved in the synthesis of estradiol (E2), was downregulated, leading to decreased levels of serum E2. Furthermore, the transcript level of the vitellogenin gene was downregulated in the liver. Thus, PFBS exposure appears to disrupt the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal-liver axis in tadpoles, subsequently impacting gonadal development. The findings of this study indicate that environmental concentrations of PFBS threaten the reproductive endocrine system in amphibians for the first time. This provides important insights for further investigation into the risk that PFBS poses to the stability of the amphibian population.
暴露于环境浓度的全氟丁烷磺酸（PFBS）是否会扰乱两栖类蝌蚪的生殖内分泌系统尚不确定。在本研究中，将处于G26期的蝌蚪用不同水平的PFBS（0、1、3和10μg/L）处理60天，以研究PFBS是否以及如何影响蝌蚪的生殖内分泌系统和性腺发育。PFBS暴露后，蝌蚪睾丸的生殖细胞出现结构损伤，精原细胞显著减少，但性别比例未受影响。此外，PFBS暴露下调了蝌蚪中与卵巢（和）和睾丸（和）发育相关基因的转录本。垂体中编码促性腺激素的基因转录上调，血清促性腺激素（FSH和LH）升高。与睾酮合成相关的基因转录上调，血清睾酮浓度升高。参与雌二醇（E2）合成的基因转录下调，导致血清E2水平降低。此外，肝脏中卵黄蛋白原基因的转录水平下调。因此，PFBS暴露似乎扰乱了蝌蚪的下丘脑-垂体-性腺-肝脏轴，随后影响性腺发育。本研究结果首次表明，环境浓度的PFBS威胁两栖动物的生殖内分泌系统。这为进一步研究PFBS对两栖动物种群稳定性构成的风险提供了重要见解。
