ElMazoudy Reda H, Attia Azza A, Saleh Tawfik A
Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Alexandria University, Moharram Bek, Alexandria 21511, Egypt.
Department of Chemistry, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Dhahran 31261, Saudi Arabia.
Toxics. 2025 Sep 17;13(9):787. doi: 10.3390/toxics13090787.
Notably, the widespread ubiquity of arsenic and graphene oxide in the environment validates the occurrence of their co-exposure, posing significant threats to target organisms, including humans. Herein, prepuberty, puberty, and maturity were investigated using anogenital distance, vaginal opening, first estrus, reproductive hormone profiles, cyclicity, sexual behaviour and pregnancy outcomes to assess the impact of exposure to arsenic and/or graphene oxide on the puberty of offspring female rats after maternal exposure during gestation and lactation periods. Zero-day pregnant Sprague Dawley females were randomly divided into four groups, each receiving a different treatment via drinking water from gestation day 0 to postnatal day 21: control group (CON, drinking water); arsenic group (ARS, 10 mg/L sodium arsenite); graphene oxide group (GOX, 0.5 mg/mL); and co-exposure group (ARS + GOX; 10 mg/L of arsenic combined with 0.5 mg/mL of graphene oxide). Individually or combined, arsenic and graphene oxide exposure increase the sexual retardation and female masculinization, as evidenced by a significant increase in anogenital distance, delay in the first estrus cycle, and prolongation in the timing of the vaginal opening. At maturity, the offspring exhibited a significant elevation of testosterone and a significant decrease in estradiol. Offspring females showed inhibited receptivity to their male mates, indicated by lower lordosis quotient and intensity. Additionally, there was an increase in the number of estrous cycles but a decrease in their duration. Moreover, an increase in implantation loss and the number of resorbed embryos, along with a reduction in viable fetuses. In conclusion, reproductive deterioration was more significant in the offspring exposed to combined arsenic and graphene oxide compared to those exposed to ARS or GOX alone, indicating that arsenic exposure is exacerbated when combined with graphene oxide during the experimental episode.
值得注意的是，砷和氧化石墨烯在环境中广泛存在，这证实了它们共同暴露的情况，对包括人类在内的目标生物构成了重大威胁。在此，通过测量肛门生殖器距离、阴道开口、首次发情、生殖激素水平、发情周期、性行为和妊娠结局，研究了青春期前、青春期和成熟期，以评估在妊娠期和哺乳期母体暴露于砷和/或氧化石墨烯后，对雌性后代大鼠青春期的影响。将零日龄怀孕的斯普拉格·道利雌性大鼠随机分为四组，从妊娠第0天到出生后第21天，每组通过饮用水接受不同的处理：对照组（CON，饮用普通水）；砷组（ARS，10 mg/L亚砷酸钠）；氧化石墨烯组（GOX，0.5 mg/mL）；以及联合暴露组（ARS + GOX；10 mg/L砷与0.5 mg/mL氧化石墨烯联合）。单独或联合暴露于砷和氧化石墨烯都会增加性发育迟缓以及雌性雄性化，表现为肛门生殖器距离显著增加、首次发情周期延迟以及阴道开口时间延长。在成熟期，后代的睾酮水平显著升高，雌二醇水平显著降低。雌性后代对雄性配偶的接受能力受到抑制，表现为较低的脊柱前凸商和强度。此外，发情周期数量增加但持续时间减少。而且，着床损失和吸收胚胎数量增加，存活胎儿数量减少。总之，与单独暴露于ARS或GOX的后代相比，联合暴露于砷和氧化石墨烯的后代生殖功能恶化更为显著，这表明在实验期间，砷与氧化石墨烯联合暴露时，砷的暴露影响会加剧。
