scholarly journals Transcriptomics and Other Omics Approaches to Investigate Effects of Xenobiotics on the Placenta

Author(s):  
Cheryl S. Rosenfeld

The conceptus is most vulnerable to developmental perturbation during its early stages when the events that create functional organ systems are being launched. As the placenta is in direct contact with maternal tissues, it readily encounters any xenobiotics in her bloodstream. Besides serving as a conduit for solutes and waste, the placenta possesses a tightly regulated endocrine system that is, of itself, vulnerable to pharmaceutical agents, endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs), and other environmental toxicants. To determine whether extrinsic factors affect placental function, transcriptomics and other omics approaches have become more widely used. In casting a wide net with such approaches, they have provided mechanistic insights into placental physiological and pathological responses and how placental responses may impact the fetus, especially the developing brain through the placenta-brain axis. This review will discuss how such omics technologies have been utilized to understand effects of EDCs, including the widely prevalent plasticizers bisphenol A (BPA), bisphenol S (BPS), and phthalates, other environmental toxicants, pharmaceutical agents, maternal smoking, and air pollution on placental gene expression, DNA methylation, and metabolomic profiles. It is also increasingly becoming clear that miRNA (miR) are important epigenetic regulators of placental function. Thus, the evidence to date that xenobiotics affect placental miR expression patterns will also be explored. Such omics approaches with mouse and human placenta will assuredly provide key biomarkers that may be used as barometers of exposure and can be targeted by early mitigation approaches to prevent later diseases, in particular neurobehavioral disorders, originating due to placental dysfunction.

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 933
Author(s):  
Maria E. Street ◽  
Karine Audouze ◽  
Juliette Legler ◽  
Hideko Sone ◽  
Paola Palanza

Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are exogenous chemicals which can disrupt any action of the endocrine system, and are an important class of substances which play a role in the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease (DOHaD) [...]


2001 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-64
Author(s):  
R. Yoshiyuki Osamura ◽  
Toshiki Iwasaka ◽  
Shinobu Umemura

2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (4) ◽  
pp. 309-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chinonye Doris Onuzulu ◽  
Oluwakemi Anuoluwapo Rotimi ◽  
Solomon Oladapo Rotimi

Abstract Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are xenobiotics which adversely modify the hormone system. The endocrine system is most vulnerable to assaults by endocrine disruptors during the prenatal and early development window, and effects may persist into adulthood and across generations. The prenatal stage is a period of vulnerability to environmental chemicals because the epigenome is usually reprogrammed during this period. Bisphenol A (BPA), lead (Pb), and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) were chosen for critical review because they have become serious public health concerns globally, especially in Africa where they are widely used without any regulation. In this review, we introduce EDCs and describe the various modes of action of EDCs and the importance of the prenatal and developmental windows to EDC exposure. We give a brief overview of epigenetics and describe the various epigenetic mechanisms: DNA methylation, histone modifications and non-coding RNAs, and how each of them affects gene expression. We then summarize findings from previous studies on the effects of prenatal exposure to the endocrine disruptors BPA, Pb and DDT on each of the previously described epigenetic mechanisms. We also discuss how the epigenetic alterations caused by these EDCs may be related to disease processes.


2013 ◽  
Vol 67 (7) ◽  
pp. 1551-1556 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. Noutsopoulos ◽  
D. Mamais ◽  
V. Samaras ◽  
T. Bouras ◽  
M. Marneri ◽  
...  

Endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are compounds of mainly anthropogenic origin that interfere with the endocrine system of animals and humans thus causing a series of disorders. Wastewater treatment plants are one of the major routes for transporting such chemicals to the water courses. In the context of this study, several chlorination batch tests were performed in order to assess the effectiveness of chlorination to remove bisphenol A (BPA), triclosan (TCS), nonylphenol (NP) and its ethoxylates (NP1EO and NP2EO) from secondary effluent. According to the results, an appreciable removal of NP, BPA and TCS to the order of 60–84% was observed as an effect of moderate chlorination doses. This was not the case for NP1EO and NP2EO as even at high chlorine doses, removal efficiencies were lower (37% for NP1EO and 52% for NP2EO). Removal efficiencies of NP, BPA and TCS are practically independent of contact time, although this was not the case for NP1EO and NP2EO. Based on toxicity experiments, it is anticipated that following chlorination of the target chemicals, production of more toxic metabolites is taking place. Therefore the effectiveness of chlorination to remove EDCs is questionable and more research is needed to guarantee safe wastewater reuse.


2003 ◽  
Vol 75 (11-12) ◽  
pp. 2321-2333 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. G. Pottinger

The extent to which nonreproductive aspects of the endocrine system are affected by environmental contaminants is to a large extent unknown. However, an emerging body of data demonstrates that the neuroendocrine stress response is a sensitive target for disruption by a range of environmental contaminants, at a number of discrete loci. Several mechanisms are responsible for generating and sustaining the corticosteroid response to a stressor, including synthesis of the steroid, negative feedback at the pituitary and hypothalamus, and clearance via metabolism and conjugation in peripheral tissues and the liver. Laboratory and field studies provide evidence that these elements of the stress response are susceptible to interference by EAS. The functional significance to the individual of interference with this important adaptive mechanism remains to be established.


Author(s):  
Maria De Falco ◽  
Vincenza Laforgia

Endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) belong to a heterogeneous class of environmental pollutants widely diffused in different aquatic and terrestrial habitats. This implies that humans and animals are continuously exposed to EDCs from different matrices and sources. Moreover, pollution derived from anthropic and industrial activities leads to combined exposure to substances with multiple mechanisms of action on the endocrine system and correlated cell and tissue targets. For this reason, specific organs, such as the prostate gland, which physiologically are under the control of hormones like androgens and estrogens, are particularly sensitive to EDC stimulation. It is now well known that an imbalance in hormonal regulation can cause the onset of various prostate diseases, from benign prostate hyperplasia to prostate cancer. In this review, starting with the description of normal prostate gland anatomy and embryology, we summarize recent studies reporting on how the multiple and simultaneous exposure to estrogenic and anti-androgenic compounds belonging to EDCs are responsible for an increase in prostate disease incidence in the human population.


Author(s):  
Sir Peter Gluckman ◽  
Mark Hanson ◽  
Chong Yap Seng ◽  
Anne Bardsley

Advice for pregnant women on food avoidance, dangerous exposures, and inappropriate behaviours abounds on the internet and through various information sources. This chapter reviews the evidence base for such advice and clarifies issues where common advice is not supported by credible data. Foods containing potential teratogens, mutagens, or toxicants that need consideration include liver (high vitamin A), some herbal teas, contaminated grains, predatory fish, caffeine-containing foods, and various sources of foodborne infections. Exposure to environmental toxicants such as lead, pesticides, herbicides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, bisphenol-A, and other endocrine-disrupting chemicals should be avoided, as should alcohol consumption and cigarette smoking. Restrictive diets and unusual dietary cravings (pica) need to be properly managed. Evidence for harm from personal care products is generally weak, but pregnant women may choose to avoid some unnecessary exposures.


2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 447-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaclyn M. Goodrich ◽  
Mary E. Ingle ◽  
Steven E. Domino ◽  
Marjorie C. Treadwell ◽  
Dana C. Dolinoy ◽  
...  

AbstractExposures to endocrine disrupting chemicals and metals are near ubiquitous worldwide, and their potential impact on children is a major public health concern. This pilot study was designed to characterize exposures to phthalates, phenols and metals among pregnant women in the first trimester, and to examine associations with fetal biometrics and birth weight. A total of 41 chemicals and elements were analyzed in urine from 56 mothers with full-term newborns from the Michigan Mother–Infant Pairs study. Bivariate analyses identified predictors of exposure biomarkers. Associations between birth weight, Fentonz-scores and second trimester fetal biometrics with toxicants were examined via multivariable linear regression. An average of 30 toxicants were detected in maternal urine. Fast food consumption was associated with several phthalate metabolites, phenols and metals, and canned food consumption with bisphenol F (P<0.05). Mono (3-carboxypropyl) phthalate was significantly associated with higher birth weight and Fentonz-score while the opposite was observed for bisphenol S. Estimated femur length from ultrasonography was significantly inversely associated with arsenic, barium and lead. While limited by sample size, this study is one of the first to evaluate birth outcomes with respect to emerging endocrine disrupting chemicals and to examine associations between toxicants and fetal biometrics. Exposure assessment was provided by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences’ Children’s Health Exposure Analysis Resource (NIEHS CHEAR), a resource available to children’s studies with the goal of combining data across cohorts in an effort to characterize the impact of toxicants on child health from birth and beyond.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document