Transcriptomics and metabolomics reveal functional nanoplastics-induced male reproductive damage and resveratrol antagonistic effects - PubMed
6 hours ago
- #male-reproductive-damage
- #nanoplastics
- #resveratrol
- Polystyrene nanoparticles (PS-NPs) can undergo surface functionalization and accumulate in living organisms, posing potential reproductive toxicity risks to males.
- The study investigated the molecular mechanisms of testicular injury in male ICR mice induced by exposure to plain PS-NPs, amino-modified PS-NPs (PS-NH₂), and carboxyl-modified PS-NPs (PS-COOH).
- Results showed that PS-NH₂ and PS-COOH caused severe spermatogenic impairment, blood-testis barrier disruption, and inflammation.
- Resveratrol (RES) treatment effectively alleviated the adverse effects induced by PS-NPs.
- Transcriptomic analysis identified 1633 differentially expressed genes, primarily associated with lipid metabolism, spermatogenesis, and apoptosis, with significant involvement of the PI3K-AKT signaling pathway.
- Metabolomic profiling identified 158 differentially expressed metabolites linked to pathways such as pyrimidine metabolism, bile secretion, and cholesterol metabolism.
- Different types of PS-NPs affected distinct biological pathways: PS group with taurine metabolism, PS-NH₂ group with bile secretion and cholesterol metabolism, and PS-COOH group with bile secretion and insulin resistance.
- PS-NPs upregulated inflammatory markers (TNF-α, IL-10) and pro-apoptotic factors (BAX, caspase-3), while downregulating PI3K, AKT, caspase-9, and caspase-8.
- The study suggests that functionalized PS-NPs induce testicular damage via activation of the PI3K-AKT pathway, inflammation, and apoptosis, with metabolic disturbances like bile secretion as contributing factors.
- Resveratrol treatment effectively mitigates the adverse effects of PS-NPs, proposing a promising therapeutic intervention.