Curcumin Mitigates AFB1-Induced Hepatic Toxicity by Triggering Cattle Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Pathways: A Whole Transcriptomic In Vitro Study

Abstract

Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) toxicity in livestock and human beings is a major economic and health concern. Natural polyphenolic substances with antioxidant properties have proven to be effective in ameliorating AFB1-induced toxicity. Here we assessed the potential anti-AFB1 activity of curcumin (pure curcumin, C, and curcumin from Curcuma longa, CL) in a bovine fetal hepatocyte-derived cell line (BFH12). First, we measured viability of cells exposed to AFB1 in presence or absence of curcumin treatment. Then, we explored all the transcriptional changes occurring in AFB1-exposed cells cotreated with curcumin. Results demonstrated that curcumin is effective in reducing AFB1-induced toxicity, decreasing cells mortality by approximately 30%. C and CL induced similar transcriptional changes in BFH12 exposed to AFB1, yet C treatment resulted in a larger number of significant genes compared to CL. The mitigating effects of curcuminoids towards AFB1 toxicity were mainly related to molecular pathways associated with antioxidant and anti-inflammatory response, cancer, and drug metabolism. Investigating mRNA changes induced by curcumin in cattle BFH12 cells exposed to AFB1 will help us to better characterize possible tools to reduce its consequences in this susceptible and economically important food-producing species.

Discovering the Protective Effects of Resveratrol on Aflatoxin B1-Induced Toxicity: A Whole Transcriptomic Study in a Bovine Hepatocyte Cell Line

“…The significant decrease in AFB1-induced cytotoxicity was crucial in demonstrating the positive impact of R in cattle, and confirmed the extraordinary potential of this natural extract. In BFH12 exposed to AFB1, curcuminoids were already proven to increase cell viability [21], but such an effect was lower compared to that observed in the present study. In agreement with this study, in BME-UV1 cells 5 µM R provided some protection against the cytotoxicity observed after 48 h of AFB1 exposure (96 nM), increasing cell viability from 40% up to 60% [26].…”

“…[8]. Catalytic activity of CYP3A was measured using a Promega commercial kit (P450-Glo TM CYP3A4 assay with Luciferin-IPA), following the protocol detailed in [21]. Six independent cell culture experiments were performed in sextuplicate.…”

Impact of Mycotoxins on Animals’ Oxidative Status

“…Regarding the in vitro studies, a recent work by Pauletto et al [ 93 ] on bovine hepatocytes reported a significant increase in MDA concentration in incubated cells with AFB1, while their transcriptional profile of antioxidant enzymes (CAT, SOD, GSH-Px) were not affected. Two comparable studies conducted in vitro in bovine mammary epithelia cells that were treated with DON (0.25 μg/mL) for 24 h showed an increase in the concentration of MDA while TAC and GSH portrayed a decrease [ 94 , 95 ].…”

Effect of Lactic Acid Bacteria Strains on the Growth and Aflatoxin Production Potential of Aspergillus parasiticus, and Their Ability to Bind Aflatoxin B1, Ochratoxin A, and Zearalenone in vitro

“…The incidence of AFM 1 in milk is of concern, because milk is the main nutritional source for infants and children ( Conteçotto et al, 2021 ). AFM 1 in the milk is derived from the biotransformation of AFB 1 by the cow ( Barnes, 1970 ; Galvano et al, 1996 ; Pauletto et al, 2020 ). Since AFM 1 binds to the casein in the milk, it may be carried into high-content protein products such as cheeses, and this is worrying considering the highly consumption of cheeses by people of all ages ( Khaneghah et al, 2021 ).…”