The Potential Mechanisms Involved in the Disruption of Spermatogenesis in Mice by Nanoplastics and Microplastics

作者全名："Wen, Yixian; Cai, Jing; Zhang, Huilian; Li, Yi; Yu, Manyao; Liu, Jinyi; Han, Fei"

作者地址："[Wen, Yixian; Cai, Jing; Zhang, Huilian; Li, Yi; Yu, Manyao; Han, Fei] Chongqing Med Univ, Sch Publ Hlth, Chongqing 400016, Peoples R China; [Wen, Yixian; Cai, Jing; Zhang, Huilian; Li, Yi; Han, Fei] Minist Educ, Joint Int Res Lab Reprod & Dev, Chongqing 400016, Peoples R China; [Liu, Jinyi] Army Med Univ, Coll Prevent Med, Inst Toxicol, Chongqing 400038, Peoples R China"

通信作者："Han, F (通讯作者)，Chongqing Med Univ, Sch Publ Hlth, Chongqing 400016, Peoples R China.; Han, F (通讯作者)，Minist Educ, Joint Int Res Lab Reprod & Dev, Chongqing 400016, Peoples R China."

来源：BIOMEDICINES

ESI学科分类：　

WOS号：WOS:001305612700001

JCR分区：Q2

影响因子：4.7

年份：2024

卷号：12

期号：8

开始页：　

结束页：　

文献类型：Article

关键词：nanoplastics; microplastics; reproductive toxicity; spermatogenesis; mechanism

摘要："Background: Plastic-based products are ubiquitous due to their tremendous utility in our daily lives. Nanoplastic (NP) and microplastic (MP) pollution has become a severe threat to the planet and is a growing concern. It has been widely reported that polystyrene (PS) MPs are severely toxic to the male reproduction system, with effects including decreased sperm parameters, impaired spermatogenesis, and damaged testicular structures. However, the molecular mechanisms for impaired spermatogenesis remain poorly understood. Methods: C57BL/6 male mice were treated with PS-NPs (80 nm) and PS-MPs (5 mu m) by oral gavage every day for 60 days. A series of morphological analyses were completed to explore the influence of PS-NP and PS-MP exposure on the testes. Compared to other cell types in the seminiferous tubule, PS-NP and PS-MP exposure can lead to decreased spermatocytes. Then, more refined molecular typing was further performed based on gene expression profiles to better understand the common and specific molecular characteristics after exposure to PS-NPs and PS-MPs. Results: There were 1794 common DEGs across the PS-NP groups at three different doses and 1433 common DEGs across the PS-MP groups at three different doses. GO and KEGG analyses of the common DEGs in the PS-NP and PS-MP groups were performed to enrich the common and specific functional progress and signaling pathways, including 349 co-enriched GO entries and 13 co-enriched pathways. Moreover, 348 GO entries and 33 pathways were specifically enriched in the PS-NP group, while 526 GO entries and 15 pathways were specifically enriched in the PS-MPs group. Conclusions: PS-NPs were predominantly involved in regulating retinoic acid metabolism, whereas PS-MPs primarily influenced pyruvate metabolism and thyroid hormone metabolism. Our results highlight the different molecular mechanisms of PS-NPs and PS-MPs in the impairment of spermatogenesis in male mammals for the first time, providing valuable insights into the precise mechanisms of PS-NPs and PS-MPs in male reproduction."

基金机构：National Natural Science Foundation of China; Chongqing Postdoctoral Science Foundation [CSTB2023NSCQ-BHX0110]; Future Medical Youth Innovation Team of Chongqing Medical University [W0151]; [82073137]

基金资助正文："This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82073137), Chongqing Postdoctoral Science Foundation (CSTB2023NSCQ-BHX0110), and Future Medical Youth Innovation Team of Chongqing Medical University (W0151)."