The role of DNA methylation on gene expression in the vertebrae of ancestrally benzo[a]pyrene exposed F1 and F3 male medaka

Abstract

Benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) is ubiquitously present in the aquatic environment and has been identified as a bone toxicant. Previous studies have demonstrated that ancestral BaP exposure can cause transgenerational bone deformities in fish. Transgenerational effects are thought to be caused by heritable epigenetic changes, such as DNA methylation, histone modification, and non-coding RNAs. To investigate the role of DNA methylation in BaP-induced transgenerational skeletal deformities and the related transcriptomic changes in deformed vertebrae, we examined the vertebrae of male F1 and F3 medaka fish using high-throughput RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) and whole-genome bisulphite sequencing (WGBS). The histological results revealed that osteoblast numbers at the vertebral bone decreased in the BaP-derived F1 and F3 adult males in comparison with the control group. Differentially methylated genes (DMGs) associated with osteoblastogenesis (F1 and F3), chondrogenesis (F1 and F3), and osteoclastogenesis (F3) were identified. However, RNA-seq data did not support the role of DNA methylation in the regulation of genes involved in skeletogenesis since there was very little correlation between the level of differential methylation and gene expression profiles related to skeletogenesis. Although DNA methylation plays a major role in the epigenetic regulation of gene expression, the dysregulation of vertebral gene expression patterns observed in the current study is most likely to be mediated by histone modification and miRNAs. Notably, RNA-seq and WGBS data indicated that genes related to nervous system development are more sensitive to ancestral BaP exposure, indicating a more complex transgenerational phenotype in response to ancestral BaP exposure.

Network-based investigation of petroleum hydrocarbons-induced ecotoxicological effects and their risk assessment

“…Benzo[a]pyrene (B[a]P) is a ubiquitous environmental pollutant that has been associated with transgenerational health consequences in humans and animals (Booc et al, 2014;Pandelides et al, 2023;Wan et al, 2023). Here, we observed a B[a]P-AOP titled 'DNA methyltransferase inhibition leading to transgenerational effects (2)' (AOP: 341) having a cumulative WoE of 'Moderate' (Table S10) and taxonomical relevance to Daphnia magna (Table S2).…”

Adsorption ability of DNA/calcium alginate magnetic aerogel microspheres toward benzo(a)anthracene

“…In recent years, the detection results of PAHs in multiple rivers and oceans showed an unfavorable situation (15μg/L for the Abou Ali River-North Lebanon, France (Jabali et al2021); 1 μg/L for the upstream rivers of Taihu Lake Basin, China (Wang et al 2022); 102.5 ng/L for the Wuhan section of the Yangtze River in China (Chen et al 2023), 614 ng/L for the Qingdao Bay in China (Lu et al 2023), and 50 ng/L for the southern part of the Bohai Sea in China (Cao et al 2024).The pollution of PAHs in rivers and soil near industrial areas, especially coking plants and coal industrial areas, was particularly concerning (Sunet al 2023;Wang HZ et al 2024;wang et al 2023).According to the concentration prediction of 8 types of PAHs in seven major water systems in China, several rivers will have high ecological risks (Zheng et al2024).The pollution of PAHs in rivers and oceans has caused harm to aquatic organisms, leading to embryonic and cardiac toxicity, DNA damage in rainbow trout, crabs, zebrafish, and other fish (Haverinen et al 2024;Geng et al 2023;Zou et al 2024). Ancestor exposure to PAHs can cause genetically modified bone deformities in fish and produce transgenerational effects, leading to the same disease in their offspring (Wan et al 2023).The pollution of rivers and oceans by PAHs can ultimately pose a threat to human health through drinking water, food intake, skin contact. People's intake of PAHs can lead to sleep disorders (Zhang et al 2023), impaired liver and lung function (Luo et al 2023;Zhou et al 2024), chronic intestinal diseases (Zang et al 2024), osteoarthritis (Famiyeh et al 2024), as well as various malignant tumors such as lung cancer (Gao et al 2024;Rahman et al 2023).…”