ADVERSE EFFECTS OF EXPOSURE BY ENDOCRINE DISREGULATORS (BISPHENOL A AND BISPHENOL F) IN A 3D HUMAN PLACENTAL MODEL

• Grant number: 24/01291-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2024
• End date: June 30, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Medical Clinics
• Principal Investigator: Celia Regina Nogueira
• Grantee: Mariana Menezes Lourenço
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina (FMB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Endocrine disruptors (EDs) are considered an emerging global public health problem due to their ability to cause adverse systemic hormonal effects, which can alter the human genome, affecting future generations. It is known that plastics cause serious environmental consequences, as they remain in the environment for centuries. Plastic is degraded into micro and nanoparticles that can contaminate air, soil, water and all life around it. Brazil produces more than 325 thousand tons of plastic waste/year, which, in addition to environmental impacts, directly interferes with the country's economic activity. The COVID-19 pandemic has intensified a problem that has been accumulating for more than 70 years, which is the inadequate production and disposal of plastics. Social isolation has changed the consumption profile of Brazilians who are using the "delivery" service more, generating a 30% monthly increase in discarded packaging. Plastics adsorb DEs, such as bisphenol A (BFA) and F (BFF), which have deleterious effects on human health. Thus, environmental stressors contribute to significantly increase the production of reactive oxygen species, causing an imbalance that leads to cellular and tissue damage, called oxidative stress. The objective of this study is to verify the contaminating potential of BFA and BFF microparticles, measuring the level of oxidative stress in a 3D Human Placental Model. To achieve this, a 3D human placental model will be built, based on the scaffold-based technique, previously constructed and tested by our research group.