Influence of exposure to benzo(a)pyrene in the juvenile period to peripuberty: immediate repercussions in male rats and multigenerational and transgenerational effects of offspring on reproductive parameters

• Grant number: 19/03264-5
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: May 01, 2021
• End date: February 28, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Interdisciplinary Subjects
• Principal Investigator: Arielle Cristina Arena
• Grantee: Bárbara Campos Jorge
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IBB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Exposure to Endocrine Disruptors (EDs) during critical windows of development can causes epigenetic alterations, which can appear immediately or long after exposure, even in subsequent generations. Benzo(a)pyrene (BaP) is a persistent organic pollutant, widely distributed in the environment. Studies have shown that BaP accumulates in vital and reproductive organs, including the testis; and may interfere with the steroidogenesis process through interaction with the StAR protein. Our laboratory have demonstrated that the BaP exposure provoked significant changes in spermatogenesis in male rats exposed from juvenile period to peripuberty, and that this compound can act as an ED, presenting a non-monotonic response patterns. However, additional data on the cellular and molecular causes of these changes and their persistence on a transgenerational scale are insufficient. The aim of this study is to evaluate the consequences of paternal exposure to BaP, from juvenile period to peripuberty, on F1 (multigenerational) and F2 (transgenerational) generations, in addition to investigating the mechanisms by which BaP caused reproductive change in parental generation (F0). Wistar male rats (Postnatal Day (PND) 23) will be distributed in two groups: a control group (corn oil + DMSO) and one group exposed to 0.1 µg/kg/day of BaP. The animals will be treated for 31 consecutive days, by oral route. In a first step, the F0 generation will be evaluated on PND 54 for investigate immediate toxicity and PND 120: stress oxidative analysis, gene expression, intratesticular testosterone dosage, DNA methylation, TUNEL and comet assay. In a second step, the possible impacts provoked by parental exposure to BaP on F1 and F2 generation will be investigated, through the following evaluations: sexual development, reproductive parameters, TUNEL assay, comet assay, stress oxidative analysis, intratesticular testosterone dosage, gene expression and DNA methylation. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

JORGE, BARBARA CAMPOS; STEIN, JULIA; REIS, ANA CAROLINA CASALI; BUENO, JESSICA NOGUEIRA; PASCHOALINI, BEATRIZ RIZZO; MOREIRA, SUYANE DA SILVA; MANOEL, BEATRIZ DE MATOS; ARENA, ARIELLE CRISTINA. Paternal low-dose benzo(a)pyrene exposure in rats impairs sexual development and fertility of the paternal lineage in F2 generation: A transgenerational study. Toxicology, v. 494, p. 10-pg., 2023-08-01. (19/03284-6, 19/03264-5, 19/07024-9)

JORGE, BARBARA CAMPOS; STEIN, JULIA; REIS, ANA CAROLINA CASALI; DE MATOS MANOEL, BEATRIZ; NAGAOKA, LIVIA TRIPPE; ARENA, ARIELLE CRISTINA. Insights from the maternal lineage of the F2 generation after exposure to an environmentally relevant dose of benzo(a)pyrene in the male rats of F0 generation. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, v. N/A, p. 14-pg., 2023-10-03. (19/03284-6, 19/03264-5)

Academic Publications

(References retrieved automatically from State of São Paulo Research Institutions)

JORGE, Bárbara Campos. Influência da exposição ao benzo(a)pireno no período juvenil até a peripuberdade: repercussões imediatas em ratos machos e efeitos multigeracionais e transgeracionais na prole sob parâmetros reprodutivos. 2023. Doctoral Thesis - Universidade Estadual Paulista (Unesp). Instituto de Biociências. Botucatu Botucatu.