Background: Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are structurally similar to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and have both central (learning and memory deficits) and peripheral (motor dysfunction) neurotoxic effects at concentrations/doses similar to those of PCBs. The cellular and molecular mechanisms for these neurotoxic effects are not fully understood; however, several studies have shown that PBDEs affect thyroid hormones, cause oxidative stress, and disrupt Ca2+-mediated signal transduction. Changes in these signal transduction pathways can lead to differential gene regulation with subsequent changes in protein expression, which can affect the development and function of the nervous system.
Objective: In this study, we examined the protein expression profiles in the rat cerebellum and hippocampus following developmental exposure to a commercial PBDE mixture, DE-71.
Methods: Pregnant Long-Evans rats were dosed perinatally with 0 or 30.6 mg/kg/day of DE-71 from gestation day 6 through sampling on postnatal day 14. Proteins from the cerebellum and hippocampus were extracted, expression differences were detected by two-dimensional difference gel electrophoresis, and proteins were identified by tandem mass spectrometry. Protein network interaction analysis was performed using Ingenuity® Pathway Analysis, and the proteins of interest were validated by Western blotting.
Results: Four proteins were significantly differentially expressed in the cerebellum following DE-71 exposure, whereas 70 proteins were significantly differentially expressed in the hippocampus. Of these proteins, 4 from the cerebellum and 47 from the hippocampus, identifiable by mass spectrometry, were found to have roles in mitochondrial energy metabolism, oxidative stress, apoptosis, calcium signaling, and growth of the nervous system.
Conclusions: Results suggest that changes in energy metabolism and processes related to neuroplasticity and growth may be involved in the developmental neurotoxicity of PBDEs.
1Neurotoxicology Branch, and 2Genetic and Cellular Toxicology Branch, Office of Research and Development (ORD), U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA; 3Systems Proteomics Center, and 4Program in Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; 5NHEERL Proteomics Research Core, ORD, U.S. EPA, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA; 6Department of Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
*These authors contributed equally to this work.
Recommended Citation:
Prasada Rao S. Kodavanti,1* Joyce E. Royl,2* Cristina Osorio,et al. Developmental Exposure to a Commercial PBDE Mixture: Effects on Protein Networks in the Cerebellum and Hippocampus of Rats[J]. Environmental Health Perspectives,2015-01-01,Volume 123(Issue 5):428