Meng Qingxuan, Song Qianqian, Meng Xinrui, Wang Xiaolong, Cong Jing
College of Biological Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, 266042, China.
College of Biological Engineering, Qingdao University of Science and Technology, Qingdao, 266042, China.
Chem Biol Interact. 2025 Sep 5;418:111602. doi: 10.1016/j.cbi.2025.111602. Epub 2025 Jun 9.
Tire wear particles (TWPs) from vehicles have emerged as significant sources of environmental microplastics, releasing hazardous metals and organic contaminants into aquatic ecosystems. However, the differential toxicological effects of TWPs originating from heavy-duty vehicle tire wear particles (HTWPs) versus light-duty vehicle tire wear particles (LTWPs) remain inadequately characterized. Here, we comprehensively evaluated physiological responses, gut microbiota alterations, and liver transcriptomic changes in zebrafish exposed to HTWPs and LTWPs. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis revealed that HTWPs exhibit rougher surfaces and sharper edges compared to LTWPs. Physiologically, HTWP exposure resulted in marked reductions in body and organ growth metrics and induced sustained oxidative stress responses, whereas LTWPs triggered comparatively milder oxidative effects. Microbial analysis demonstrated significant gut dysbiosis following HTWP exposure, characterized by decreased microbial diversity and an increased abundance of pathogenic Acinetobacter, negatively correlated with hepatic irf1b expression. Functional predictions based on PICRUSt2 further revealed vehicle-specific alterations in gut microbial metabolism: immune- and xenobiotic-related pathways were enriched under HTWP exposure, while LTWP exposure enhanced microbial functions related to lipid metabolism. These functional shifts suggest potential host-microbiota metabolic crosstalk. Transcriptomic analyses indicated particle-type-specific disruptions: HTWPs predominantly impaired carbohydrate metabolism, downregulating critical glycolytic genes (pgk1, pkma), while LTWPs primarily altered lipid metabolic pathways, as evidenced by decreased acacb and increased hadhaa expression. Notably, both HTWP and LTWP exposures activated inflammatory signaling via the MAPK pathway, particularly through upregulation of mapk8a. Quantitative PCR validation confirmed the robustness and reliability of the RNA-seq results. Together, these findings highlight distinct toxicological mechanisms driven by vehicle source and underscore the need for source-specific ecological risk assessments to mitigate the environmental impact of TWP pollution.
车辆产生的轮胎磨损颗粒（TWPs）已成为环境微塑料的重要来源，将有害金属和有机污染物释放到水生生态系统中。然而，源自重型车辆轮胎磨损颗粒（HTWPs）与轻型车辆轮胎磨损颗粒（LTWPs）的TWPs的不同毒理学效应仍未得到充分表征。在此，我们全面评估了暴露于HTWPs和LTWPs的斑马鱼的生理反应、肠道微生物群变化和肝脏转录组变化。扫描电子显微镜（SEM）分析显示，与LTWPs相比，HTWPs的表面更粗糙，边缘更锋利。在生理上，暴露于HTWPs导致身体和器官生长指标显著降低，并引发持续的氧化应激反应，而LTWPs引发的氧化作用相对较轻。微生物分析表明，暴露于HTWPs后肠道微生物群出现明显失调，其特征是微生物多样性降低和致病性不动杆菌丰度增加，与肝脏irf1b表达呈负相关。基于PICRUSt2的功能预测进一步揭示了肠道微生物代谢中特定于车辆类型的变化：在HTWPs暴露下，免疫和异生物质相关途径富集，而LTWPs暴露增强了与脂质代谢相关的微生物功能。这些功能转变表明宿主-微生物群代谢存在潜在的相互作用。转录组分析表明存在颗粒类型特异性破坏：HTWPs主要损害碳水化合物代谢，下调关键的糖酵解基因（pgk1、pkma），而LTWPs主要改变脂质代谢途径，acacb表达降低和hadhaa表达增加证明了这一点。值得注意的是，HTWP和LTWP暴露均通过MAPK途径激活炎症信号，特别是通过mapk8a的上调。定量PCR验证证实了RNA-seq结果的稳健性和可靠性。总之，这些发现突出了由车辆来源驱动的不同毒理学机制，并强调需要进行特定于来源的生态风险评估，以减轻TWP污染对环境的影响。
