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Treschow AF, Valente MJ, Lauschke K, Holst B, Andersen AR, Vinggaard AM. Investigating the applicability domain of the hiPSC-based PluriLum assay: an embryotoxicity assessment of chemicals and drugs. Arch Toxicol 2024; 98:1209-1224. [PMID: 38311648 PMCID: PMC10944425 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-023-03675-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 02/06/2024]
Abstract
To meet the growing demand for developmental toxicity assessment of chemicals, New Approach Methodologies (NAMs) are needed. Previously, we developed two 3D in vitro assays based on human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) and cardiomyocyte differentiation: the PluriBeat assay, based on assessment of beating differentiated embryoid bodies, and the PluriLum assay, a reporter gene assay based on the expression of the early cardiac marker NKX2.5; both promising assays for predicting embryotoxic effects of chemicals and drugs. In this work, we aimed to further describe the predictive power of the PluriLum assay and compare its sensitivity with PluriBeat and similar human stem cell-based assays developed by others. For this purpose, we assessed the toxicity of a panel of ten chemicals from different chemical classes, consisting of the known developmental toxicants 5-fluorouracil, all-trans retinoic acid and valproic acid, as well as the negative control compounds ascorbic acid and folic acid. In addition, the fungicides epoxiconazole and prochloraz, and three perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), PFOS, PFOA and GenX were tested. Generally, the PluriLum assay displayed higher sensitivity when compared to the PluriBeat assay. For several compounds the luminescence readout of the PluriLum assay showed effects not detected by the PluriBeat assay, including two PFAS compounds and the two fungicides. Overall, we find that the PluriLum assay has the potential to provide a fast and objective detection of developmental toxicants and has a level of sensitivity that is comparable to or higher than other in vitro assays also based on human stem cells and cardiomyocyte differentiation for assessment of developmental toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andreas Frederik Treschow
- Cell Toxicology Team, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.
| | - Maria João Valente
- Cell Toxicology Team, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Karin Lauschke
- Cell Toxicology Team, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
- Cell Therapy TRU, Novo Nordisk A/S, Måløv, Denmark
| | | | - Anders Reenberg Andersen
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Computer Science, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Anne Marie Vinggaard
- Cell Toxicology Team, National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.
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2
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Reay WR, Kiltschewskij DJ, Di Biase MA, Gerring ZF, Kundu K, Surendran P, Greco LA, Clarke ED, Collins CE, Mondul AM, Albanes D, Cairns MJ. Genetic influences on circulating retinol and its relationship to human health. Nat Commun 2024; 15:1490. [PMID: 38374065 PMCID: PMC10876955 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45779-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2023] [Accepted: 02/04/2024] [Indexed: 02/21/2024] Open
Abstract
Retinol is a fat-soluble vitamin that plays an essential role in many biological processes throughout the human lifespan. Here, we perform the largest genome-wide association study (GWAS) of retinol to date in up to 22,274 participants. We identify eight common variant loci associated with retinol, as well as a rare-variant signal. An integrative gene prioritisation pipeline supports novel retinol-associated genes outside of the main retinol transport complex (RBP4:TTR) related to lipid biology, energy homoeostasis, and endocrine signalling. Genetic proxies of circulating retinol were then used to estimate causal relationships with almost 20,000 clinical phenotypes via a phenome-wide Mendelian randomisation study (MR-pheWAS). The MR-pheWAS suggests that retinol may exert causal effects on inflammation, adiposity, ocular measures, the microbiome, and MRI-derived brain phenotypes, amongst several others. Conversely, circulating retinol may be causally influenced by factors including lipids and serum creatinine. Finally, we demonstrate how a retinol polygenic score could identify individuals more likely to fall outside of the normative range of circulating retinol for a given age. In summary, this study provides a comprehensive evaluation of the genetics of circulating retinol, as well as revealing traits which should be prioritised for further investigation with respect to retinol related therapies or nutritional intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- William R Reay
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, Australia.
- Precision Medicine Research Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, NSW, Australia.
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia.
| | - Dylan J Kiltschewskij
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, Australia
- Precision Medicine Research Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, NSW, Australia
| | - Maria A Di Biase
- Melbourne Neuropsychiatry Centre, Department of Psychiatry, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Department of Anatomy and Physiology, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
- Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Zachary F Gerring
- QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
| | - Kousik Kundu
- Human Genetics, Wellcome Sanger Institute, Wellcome Genome Campus, Hinxton, Cambridge, UK
- Department of Haematology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Cambridge, UK
| | - Praveen Surendran
- British Heart Foundation Cardiovascular Epidemiology Unit, Department of Public Health and Primary Care, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- British Heart Foundation Centre of Research Excellence, School of Clinical Medicine, Addenbrooke's Hospital, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- Health Data Research UK, Wellcome Genome Campus and University of Cambridge, Hinxton, UK
| | - Laura A Greco
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, Australia
- Precision Medicine Research Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, NSW, Australia
| | - Erin D Clarke
- School of Health Sciences, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, Australia
- Food and Nutrition Research Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, NSW, Australia
| | - Clare E Collins
- School of Health Sciences, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, Australia
- Food and Nutrition Research Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, NSW, Australia
| | - Alison M Mondul
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Michigan School of Public Health, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Demetrius Albanes
- Division of Cancer Epidemiology and Genetics, National Cancer Institute, NIH, Department of Health and Human Services, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Murray J Cairns
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan, NSW, Australia.
- Precision Medicine Research Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, NSW, Australia.
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3
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Sandeep P, Sharma P, Luhach K, Dhiman N, Kharkwal H, Sharma B. Neuron navigators: A novel frontier with physiological and pathological implications. Mol Cell Neurosci 2023; 127:103905. [PMID: 37972804 DOI: 10.1016/j.mcn.2023.103905] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2023] [Revised: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuron navigators are microtubule plus-end tracking proteins containing basic and serine rich regions which are encoded by neuron navigator genes (NAVs). Neuron navigator proteins are essential for neurite outgrowth, neuronal migration, and overall neurodevelopment along with some other functions as well. The navigator proteins are substantially expressed in the developing brain and have been reported to be differentially expressed in various tissues at different ages. Over the years, the research has found neuron navigators to be implicated in a spectrum of pathological conditions such as developmental anomalies, neurodegenerative disorders, neuropathic pain, anxiety, cancers, and certain inflammatory conditions. The existing knowledge about neuron navigators remains sparse owing to their differential functions, undiscovered modulators, and unknown molecular mechanisms. Investigating the possible role of neuron navigators in various physiological processes and pathological conditions pose as a novel field that requires extensive research and might provide novel mechanistic insights and understanding of these aspects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Parth Sandeep
- Department of Pharmacology, Amity Institute of Pharmacy, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, Noida, India
| | - Poonam Sharma
- Department of Pharmacology, Amity Institute of Pharmacy, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, Noida, India
| | - Kanishk Luhach
- Department of Pharmacology, Amity Institute of Pharmacy, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, Noida, India
| | - Neerupma Dhiman
- Amity Institute of Pharmacy, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, Noida, India
| | - Harsha Kharkwal
- Amity Natural and Herbal Product Research, Amity Institute of Phytochemistry and Phytomedicine, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Bhupesh Sharma
- Department of Pharmacology, Amity Institute of Pharmacy, Amity University, Uttar Pradesh, Noida, India.
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Seidel F, Kappenberg F, Fayyaz S, Scholtz-Illigens A, Cherianidou A, Derksen K, Nell P, Marchan R, Edlund K, Leist M, Sachinidis A, Rahnenführer J, Kreiling R, Hengstler JG. Risk assessment of parabens in a transcriptomics-based in vitro test. Chem Biol Interact 2023; 384:110699. [PMID: 37690743 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbi.2023.110699] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023]
Abstract
Parabens have been used for decades as preservatives in food, drugs and cosmetics. The majority however, were banned in 2009 and 2014 leaving only methyl-, ethyl-, propyl-, and butyl-derivates available for subsequent use. Methyl- and propylparaben have been extensively tested in vivo, with no resulting evidence for developmental and reproductive toxicity (DART). In contrast, ethylparaben has not yet been tested for DART in animal experiments, and it is currently debated if additional animal studies are warranted. In order to perform a comparison of the four currently approved parabens, we used a previously established in vitro test based on human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) that are exposed to test substances during their differentiation to neuroectodermal cells. EC50 values for cytotoxicity were 906 μM, 698 μM, 216 μM and 63 μM for methyl-, ethyl-, propyl- and butylparaben, respectively, demonstrating that cytotoxicity increases with increasing alkyl chain length. Genome-wide analysis demonstrated that FDR-adjusted significant gene expression changes occurred only at cytotoxic or close to cytotoxic concentrations, for example 1720 differentially expressed genes (DEG) at 1000 μM ethylparaben, 1 DEG at 316 μM, and no DEG at 100 μM or lower concentrations. The highest concentration of ethylparaben that did not induce any cytotoxicity nor DEG was 1670-fold above the highest concentration reported in biomonitoring studies (60 nM ethylparaben in cord blood). In conclusion, cytotoxicity and gene expression alterations of ethylparaben occurred at concentrations of approximately three orders of magnitude above human blood concentrations; moreover, the substance fitted well into a scenario where toxicity increases with the alkyl chain length, and gene expression changes only occur at cytotoxic or close to cytotoxic concentrations. Therefore, no evidence was obtained suggesting that in vivo DART with ethylparaben would lead to different results as the methyl- or propyl derivates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Florian Seidel
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
| | - Franziska Kappenberg
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Susann Fayyaz
- Clariant Produkte (Deutschland) GmbH, Brüningstrasse 50, 65929, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Andreas Scholtz-Illigens
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Anna Cherianidou
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Katharina Derksen
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Patrick Nell
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Rosemarie Marchan
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Karolina Edlund
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Marcel Leist
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstr. 10, PO, Box M657, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Agapios Sachinidis
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany; Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Jörg Rahnenführer
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Reinhard Kreiling
- Clariant Produkte (Deutschland) GmbH, Brüningstrasse 50, 65929, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Jan G Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
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5
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Yang T, Yan C, Yang L, Tan J, Jiang S, Hu J, Gao W, Wang Q, Li Y. Identification and validation of core genes for type 2 diabetes mellitus by integrated analysis of single-cell and bulk RNA-sequencing. Eur J Med Res 2023; 28:340. [PMID: 37700362 PMCID: PMC10498638 DOI: 10.1186/s40001-023-01321-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2023] [Accepted: 08/27/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The exact mechanisms of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) remain largely unknown. We intended to authenticate critical genes linked to T2DM progression by tandem single-cell sequencing and general transcriptome sequencing data. METHODS T2DM single-cell RNA-sequencing data were submitted by the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database and ArrayExpress (EBI), from which gene expression matrices were retrieved. The common cell clusters and representative marker genes were ascertained by principal component analysis (PCA), t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (t-SNE), CellMarker, and FindMarkers in two datasets (GSE86469 and GSE81608). T2DM-related differentially expressed marker genes were defined by intersection analysis of marker genes and GSE86468-differentially expressed genes. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were utilized to assign representative marker genes with diagnostic values by GSE86468, GSE29226 and external validation GSE29221, and their prospective target compounds were forecasted by PubChem. Besides, the R package clusterProfiler-based functional annotation was designed to unveil the intrinsic mechanisms of the target genes. At last, western blot was used to validate the alternation of CDKN1C and DLK1 expression in primary pancreatic islet cells cultured with or without 30mM glucose. RESULTS Three common cell clusters were authenticated in two independent T2DM single-cell sequencing data, covering neurons, epithelial cells, and smooth muscle cells. Functional ensemble analysis disclosed an intimate association of these cell clusters with peptide/insulin secretion and pancreatic development. Pseudo-temporal trajectory analysis indicated that almost all epithelial and smooth muscle cells were of neuron origin. We characterized CDKN1C and DLK1, which were notably upregulated in T2DM samples, with satisfactory availability in recognizing three representative marker genes in non-diabetic and T2DM samples, and they were also robustly interlinked with the clinical characteristics of patients. Western blot also demonstrated that, compared with control group, the expression of CDKN1C and DLK1 were increased in primary pancreatic islet cells cultured with 30 mM glucose for 48 h. Additionally, PubChem projected 11 and 21 potential compounds for CDKN1C and DLK1, respectively. CONCLUSION It is desirable that the emergence of the 2 critical genes indicated (CDKN1C and DLK1) could be catalysts for the investigation of the mechanisms of T2DM progression and the exploitation of innovative therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tingting Yang
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Chaoying Yan
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Lan Yang
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Jialu Tan
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Shiqiu Jiang
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Juan Hu
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
- Shaanxi University of Chinese Medicine, Xianyang, Shaanxi, China
| | - Wei Gao
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China
| | - Qiang Wang
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China.
| | - Yansong Li
- Department of Anesthesiology & Center for Brain Science, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, 710061, Shaanxi, China.
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6
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Cherianidou A, Kappenberg F, Seidel F, Acharya A, Papazoglou P, Srinivasan SP, Hescheler J, Peng L, Leist M, Hengstler JG, Rahnenführer J, Sachinidis A. Transcriptome-based prediction of drugs, inhibiting cardiomyogenesis in human induced pluripotent stem cells. Cell Death Discov 2023; 9:321. [PMID: 37644023 PMCID: PMC10465524 DOI: 10.1038/s41420-023-01616-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2023] [Revised: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 08/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Animal studies for embryotoxicity evaluation of potential therapeutics and environmental factors are complex, costly, and time-consuming. Often, studies are not of human relevance because of species differences. In the present study, we recapitulated the process of cardiomyogenesis in human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) by modulation of the Wnt signaling pathway to identify a key cardiomyogenesis gene signature that can be applied to identify compounds and/or stress factors compromising the cardiomyogenesis process. Among the 23 tested teratogens and 16 non-teratogens, we identified three retinoids including 13-cis-retinoic acid that completely block the process of cardiomyogenesis in hiPSCs. Moreover, we have identified an early gene signature consisting of 31 genes and associated biological processes that are severely affected by the retinoids. To predict the inhibitory potential of teratogens and non-teratogens in the process of cardiomyogenesis we established the "Developmental Cardiotoxicity Index" (CDI31g) that accurately differentiates teratogens and non-teratogens to do or do not affect the differentiation of hiPSCs to functional cardiomyocytes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Cherianidou
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, 50931 Cologne, Germany Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Franziska Kappenberg
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Florian Seidel
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Aviseka Acharya
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, 50931 Cologne, Germany Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Panagiota Papazoglou
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, 50931 Cologne, Germany Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Sureshkumar Perumal Srinivasan
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, 50931 Cologne, Germany Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Jürgen Hescheler
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, 50931 Cologne, Germany Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Luying Peng
- Heart Health Center, Shanghai East Hospital, School of Medicine, Tongji University, 200120, Shanghai and Research Units of Origin and Regulation of Heart Rhythm, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, 100730, Beijing, China
| | - Marcel Leist
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstr. 10, PO, Box M657, 78457, Constance, Germany
| | - Jan G Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Jörg Rahnenführer
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Agapios Sachinidis
- University of Cologne, Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, 50931 Cologne, Germany Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany.
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7
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Takla TN, Luo J, Sudyk R, Huang J, Walker JC, Vora NL, Sexton JZ, Parent JM, Tidball AM. A Shared Pathogenic Mechanism for Valproic Acid and SHROOM3 Knockout in a Brain Organoid Model of Neural Tube Defects. Cells 2023; 12:1697. [PMID: 37443734 PMCID: PMC10340169 DOI: 10.3390/cells12131697] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2023] [Revised: 06/17/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Neural tube defects (NTDs), including anencephaly and spina bifida, are common major malformations of fetal development resulting from incomplete closure of the neural tube. These conditions lead to either universal death (anencephaly) or severe lifelong complications (spina bifida). Despite hundreds of genetic mouse models of neural tube defect phenotypes, the genetics of human NTDs are poorly understood. Furthermore, pharmaceuticals, such as antiseizure medications, have been found clinically to increase the risk of NTDs when administered during pregnancy. Therefore, a model that recapitulates human neurodevelopment would be of immense benefit to understand the genetics underlying NTDs and identify teratogenic mechanisms. Using our self-organizing single rosette cortical organoid (SOSR-COs) system, we have developed a high-throughput image analysis pipeline for evaluating the SOSR-CO structure for NTD-like phenotypes. Similar to small molecule inhibition of apical constriction, the antiseizure medication valproic acid (VPA), a known cause of NTDs, increases the apical lumen size and apical cell surface area in a dose-responsive manner. GSK3β and HDAC inhibitors caused similar lumen expansion; however, RNA sequencing suggests VPA does not inhibit GSK3β at these concentrations. The knockout of SHROOM3, a well-known NTD-related gene, also caused expansion of the lumen, as well as reduced f-actin polarization. The increased lumen sizes were caused by reduced cell apical constriction, suggesting that impingement of this process is a shared mechanism for VPA treatment and SHROOM3-KO, two well-known causes of NTDs. Our system allows the rapid identification of NTD-like phenotypes for both compounds and genetic variants and should prove useful for understanding specific NTD mechanisms and predicting drug teratogenicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor N. Takla
- Department of Neurology, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA (R.S.)
| | - Jinghui Luo
- Department of Neurology, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA (R.S.)
| | - Roksolana Sudyk
- Department of Neurology, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA (R.S.)
| | - Joy Huang
- Department of Neurology, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA (R.S.)
| | - John Clayton Walker
- Department of Neurology, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA (R.S.)
| | - Neeta L. Vora
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Jonathan Z. Sexton
- Department of Internal Medicine, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, College of Pharmacy, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
- Center for Drug Repurposing, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
| | - Jack M. Parent
- Department of Neurology, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA (R.S.)
- Michigan Neuroscience Institute, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA
- VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, MI 48105, USA
| | - Andrew M. Tidball
- Department of Neurology, Medical School, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA (R.S.)
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8
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Takla TN, Luo J, Sudyk R, Huang J, Walker JC, Vora NL, Sexton JZ, Parent JM, Tidball AM. A Shared Pathogenic Mechanism for Valproic Acid and SHROOM3 Knockout in a Brain Organoid Model of Neural Tube Defects. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.04.11.536245. [PMID: 37090564 PMCID: PMC10120643 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.11.536245] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/25/2023]
Abstract
Neural tube defects (NTDs) including anencephaly and spina bifida are common major malformations of fetal development resulting from incomplete closure of the neural tube. These conditions lead to either universal death (anencephaly) or life-long severe complications (spina bifida). Despite hundreds of genetic mouse models having neural tube defect phenotypes, the genetics of human NTDs are poorly understood. Furthermore, pharmaceuticals such as antiseizure medications have been found clinically to increase the risk of NTDs when administered during pregnancy. Therefore, a model that recapitulates human neurodevelopment would be of immense benefit to understand the genetics underlying NTDs and identify teratogenic mechanisms. Using our self-organizing single rosette spheroid (SOSRS) brain organoid system, we have developed a high-throughput image analysis pipeline for evaluating SOSRS structure for NTD-like phenotypes. Similar to small molecule inhibition of apical constriction, the antiseizure medication valproic acid (VPA), a known cause of NTDs, increases the apical lumen size and apical cell surface area in a dose-responsive manner. This expansion was mimicked by GSK3β and HDAC inhibitors; however, RNA sequencing suggests VPA does not inhibit GSK3β at these concentrations. Knockout of SHROOM3, a well-known NTD-related gene, also caused expansion of the lumen as well as reduced f-actin polarization. The increased lumen sizes were caused by reduced cell apical constriction suggesting that impingement of this process is a shared mechanism for VPA treatment and SHROOM3-KO, two well-known causes of NTDs. Our system allows the rapid identification of NTD-like phenotypes for both compounds and genetic variants and should prove useful for understanding specific NTD mechanisms and predicting drug teratogenicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Taylor N. Takla
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Jinghui Luo
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Roksolana Sudyk
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Joy Huang
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - J. Clayton Walker
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Neeta L. Vora
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC
| | - Jonathan Z. Sexton
- Department of Internal Medicine, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
- Department of Medicinal Chemistry, University of Michigan College of Pharmacy, Ann Arbor, MI
- Center for Drug Repurposing, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Jack M. Parent
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
- Michigan Neuroscience Institute, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
- VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System, Ann Arbor, MI
| | - Andrew M. Tidball
- Department of Neurology, University of Michigan Medical School, Ann Arbor, MI
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9
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Blum J, Masjosthusmann S, Bartmann K, Bendt F, Dolde X, Dönmez A, Förster N, Holzer AK, Hübenthal U, Keßel HE, Kilic S, Klose J, Pahl M, Stürzl LC, Mangas I, Terron A, Crofton KM, Scholze M, Mosig A, Leist M, Fritsche E. Establishment of a human cell-based in vitro battery to assess developmental neurotoxicity hazard of chemicals. CHEMOSPHERE 2023; 311:137035. [PMID: 36328314 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2022.137035] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2022] [Revised: 10/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/24/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) is a major safety concern for all chemicals of the human exposome. However, DNT data from animal studies are available for only a small percentage of manufactured compounds. Test methods with a higher throughput than current regulatory guideline methods, and with improved human relevance are urgently needed. We therefore explored the feasibility of DNT hazard assessment based on new approach methods (NAMs). An in vitro battery (IVB) was assembled from ten individual NAMs that had been developed during the past years to probe effects of chemicals on various fundamental neurodevelopmental processes. All assays used human neural cells at different developmental stages. This allowed us to assess disturbances of: (i) proliferation of neural progenitor cells (NPC); (ii) migration of neural crest cells, radial glia cells, neurons and oligodendrocytes; (iii) differentiation of NPC into neurons and oligodendrocytes; and (iv) neurite outgrowth of peripheral and central neurons. In parallel, cytotoxicity measures were obtained. The feasibility of concentration-dependent screening and of a reliable biostatistical processing of the complex multi-dimensional data was explored with a set of 120 test compounds, containing subsets of pre-defined positive and negative DNT compounds. The battery provided alerts (hit or borderline) for 24 of 28 known toxicants (82% sensitivity), and for none of the 17 negative controls. Based on the results from this screen project, strategies were developed on how IVB data may be used in the context of risk assessment scenarios employing integrated approaches for testing and assessment (IATA).
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan Blum
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated By the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457, Konstanz, Germany.
| | - Stefan Masjosthusmann
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Kristina Bartmann
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Farina Bendt
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Xenia Dolde
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated By the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Arif Dönmez
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Nils Förster
- Bioinformatics Group, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Anna-Katharina Holzer
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated By the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Ulrike Hübenthal
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Hagen Eike Keßel
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Sadiye Kilic
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated By the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Jördis Klose
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Melanie Pahl
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Lynn-Christin Stürzl
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Iris Mangas
- European Food Safety Authority, PREV Unit, 43126, Parma, Italy
| | - Andrea Terron
- European Food Safety Authority, PREV Unit, 43126, Parma, Italy
| | | | - Martin Scholze
- Institute of Environment Health and Societies, Brunel University London, UK
| | - Axel Mosig
- Bioinformatics Group, Ruhr University Bochum, 44801, Bochum, Germany
| | - Marcel Leist
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated By the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457, Konstanz, Germany.
| | - Ellen Fritsche
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany; Medical Faculty, Heinrich-Heine-University, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany.
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10
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Manuela J, David ZJ, Nicole S, Nicole C, Paul B, Erich K, Lisa SP, Claudia M, Marcel L, Stefan K. Optimization of the TeraTox assay for preclinical teratogenicity assessment. Toxicol Sci 2022; 188:17-33. [PMID: 35485993 PMCID: PMC9237991 DOI: 10.1093/toxsci/kfac046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Current animal-free methods to assess teratogenicity of drugs under development still deliver high numbers of false negatives. To improve the sensitivity of human teratogenicity prediction, we characterized the TeraTox test, a newly developed multilineage differentiation assay using 3D human-induced pluripotent stem cells. TeraTox produces primary output concentration-dependent cytotoxicity and altered gene expression induced by each test compound. These data are fed into an interpretable machine-learning model to perform prediction, which relates to the concentration-dependent human teratogenicity potential of drug candidates. We applied TeraTox to profile 33 approved pharmaceuticals and 12 proprietary drug candidates with known in vivo data. Comparing TeraTox predictions with known human or animal toxicity, we report an accuracy of 69% (specificity: 53%, sensitivity: 79%). TeraTox performed better than 2 quantitative structure-activity relationship models and had a higher sensitivity than the murine embryonic stem cell test (accuracy: 58%, specificity: 76%, and sensitivity: 46%) run in the same laboratory. The overall prediction accuracy could be further improved by combining TeraTox and mouse embryonic stem cell test results. Furthermore, patterns of altered gene expression revealed by TeraTox may help grouping toxicologically similar compounds and possibly deducing common modes of action. The TeraTox assay and the dataset described here therefore represent a new tool and a valuable resource for drug teratogenicity assessment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaklin Manuela
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland.,Department for In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine Inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, Germany
| | - Zhang Jitao David
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland
| | - Schäfer Nicole
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland
| | - Clemann Nicole
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland
| | - Barrow Paul
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland
| | - Küng Erich
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland
| | - Sach-Peltason Lisa
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland
| | | | - Leist Marcel
- Department for In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine Inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, Germany
| | - Kustermann Stefan
- Pharma Research and Early Development, Roche Innovation Center Basel, F. Hoffmann-La Roche, Switzerland
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11
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Cherianidou A, Seidel F, Kappenberg F, Dreser N, Blum J, Waldmann T, Blüthgen N, Meisig J, Madjar K, Henry M, Rotshteyn T, Marchan R, Edlund K, Leist M, Rahnenführer J, Sachinidis A, Hengstler JG. Classification of Developmental Toxicants in a Human iPSC Transcriptomics-Based Test. Chem Res Toxicol 2022; 35:760-773. [PMID: 35416653 PMCID: PMC9377669 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.1c00392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
![]()
Despite the progress
made in developmental toxicology, there is
a great need for in vitro tests that identify developmental toxicants
in relation to human oral doses and blood concentrations. In the present
study, we established the hiPSC-based UKK2 in vitro test and analyzed
genome-wide expression profiles of 23 known teratogens and 16 non-teratogens.
Compounds were analyzed at the maximal plasma concentration (Cmax) and at 20-fold Cmax for a 24 h incubation period in three independent experiments. Based
on the 1000 probe sets with the highest variance and including information
on cytotoxicity, penalized logistic regression with leave-one-out
cross-validation was used to classify the compounds as test-positive
or test-negative, reaching an area under the curve (AUC), accuracy,
sensitivity, and specificity of 0.96, 0.92, 0.96, and 0.88, respectively.
Omitting the cytotoxicity information reduced the test performance
to an AUC of 0.94, an accuracy of 0.79, and a sensitivity of 0.74.
A second method, which used the number of significantly deregulated
probe sets to classify the compounds, resulted in a specificity of
1; however, the AUC (0.90), accuracy (0.90), and sensitivity (0.83)
were inferior compared to those of the logistic regression-based procedure.
Finally, no increased performance was achieved when the high test
concentrations (20-fold Cmax) were used,
in comparison to testing within the realistic clinical range (1-fold Cmax). In conclusion, although further optimization
is required, for example, by including additional readouts and cell
systems that model different developmental processes, the UKK2-test
in its present form can support the early discovery-phase detection
of human developmental toxicants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Cherianidou
- Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, University of Cologne, Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Florian Seidel
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Franziska Kappenberg
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Nadine Dreser
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstr. 10, P.O. Box M657, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Jonathan Blum
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstr. 10, P.O. Box M657, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Tanja Waldmann
- Department of Advanced Cell Systems, trenzyme GmbH, Byk-Gulden-Str. 2, 78467 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Nils Blüthgen
- Institute of Pathology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Chariteplatz 1, 10117 Berlin, Germany.,IRI Life Sciences, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Philippstraße 13, Haus 18, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Johannes Meisig
- Institute of Pathology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Chariteplatz 1, 10117 Berlin, Germany.,IRI Life Sciences, Humboldt Universität zu Berlin, Philippstraße 13, Haus 18, 10115 Berlin, Germany
| | - Katrin Madjar
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Margit Henry
- Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, University of Cologne, Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931 Cologne, Germany.,Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Tamara Rotshteyn
- Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, University of Cologne, Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931 Cologne, Germany.,Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Rosemarie Marchan
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Karolina Edlund
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Marcel Leist
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstr. 10, P.O. Box M657, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Jörg Rahnenführer
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, Vogelpothsweg 87, 44227 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Agapios Sachinidis
- Faculty of Medicine and University Hospital Cologne, Center for Physiology, Working Group Sachinidis, University of Cologne, Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931 Cologne, Germany.,Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Jan G Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), Ardeystrasse 67, 44139 Dortmund, Germany
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12
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Lozano M, Yousefi P, Broberg K, Soler-Blasco R, Miyashita C, Pesce G, Kim WJ, Rahman M, Bakulski KM, Haug LS, Ikeda-Araki A, Huel G, Park J, Relton C, Vrijheid M, Rifas-Shiman S, Oken E, Dou JF, Kishi R, Gutzkow KB, Annesi-Maesano I, Won S, Hivert MF, Fallin MD, Vafeiadi M, Ballester F, Bustamante M, Llop S. DNA methylation changes associated with prenatal mercury exposure: A meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies from PACE consortium. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2022; 204:112093. [PMID: 34562483 PMCID: PMC10879652 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2021.112093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2021] [Revised: 09/17/2021] [Accepted: 09/18/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Mercury (Hg) is a ubiquitous heavy metal that originates from both natural and anthropogenic sources and is transformed in the environment to its most toxicant form, methylmercury (MeHg). Recent studies suggest that MeHg exposure can alter epigenetic modifications during embryogenesis. In this study, we examined associations between prenatal MeHg exposure and levels of cord blood DNA methylation (DNAm) by meta-analysis in up to seven independent studies (n = 1462) as well as persistence of those relationships in blood from 7 to 8 year-old children (n = 794). In cord blood, we found limited evidence of differential DNAm at cg24184221 in MED31 (β = 2.28 × 10-4, p-value = 5.87 × 10-5) in relation to prenatal MeHg exposure. In child blood, we identified differential DNAm at cg15288800 (β = 0.004, p-value = 4.97 × 10-5), also located in MED31. This repeated link to MED31, a gene involved in lipid metabolism and RNA Polymerase II transcription function, may suggest a DNAm perturbation related to MeHg exposure that persists into early childhood. Further, we found evidence for association between prenatal MeHg exposure and child blood DNAm levels at two additional CpGs: cg12204245 (β = 0.002, p-value = 4.81 × 10-7) in GRK1 and cg02212000 (β = -0.001, p-value = 8.13 × 10-7) in GGH. Prenatal MeHg exposure was associated with DNAm modifications that may influence health outcomes, such as cognitive or anthropometric development, in different populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manuel Lozano
- Preventive Medicine and Public Health, Food Sciences, Toxicology and Forensic Medicine Department, Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain; Epidemiology and Environmental Health Joint Research Unit, FISABIO-Universitat Jaume I-Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain.
| | - Paul Yousefi
- MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom; Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - Karin Broberg
- Unit of Metals and Health, Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden; Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Raquel Soler-Blasco
- Epidemiology and Environmental Health Joint Research Unit, FISABIO-Universitat Jaume I-Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain
| | - Chihiro Miyashita
- Center for Environmental and Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Giancarlo Pesce
- INSERM UMR1018, Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, Centre for Epidemiology and Public Health (CESP), Villejuif, France
| | - Woo Jin Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine and Environmental Health Center, Kangwon National University, Chuncheon, South Korea
| | - Mohammad Rahman
- Division of Chronic Disease Research Across the Lifecourse, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Kelly M Bakulski
- School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Line S Haug
- Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Division of Climate and Environment, Oslo, Norway
| | - Atsuko Ikeda-Araki
- Center for Environmental and Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hokkaido, Japan; Faculty of Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Guy Huel
- INSERM UMR1018, Université Paris-Saclay, UVSQ, Centre for Epidemiology and Public Health (CESP), Villejuif, France
| | - Jaehyun Park
- Interdisciplinary Program of Bioinformatics, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Caroline Relton
- MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom; Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - Martine Vrijheid
- Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain; ISGlobal, Barcelona, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sheryl Rifas-Shiman
- Division of Chronic Disease Research Across the Lifecourse, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Emily Oken
- Division of Chronic Disease Research Across the Lifecourse, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, United States
| | - John F Dou
- School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Reiko Kishi
- Center for Environmental and Health Sciences, Hokkaido University, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Kristine B Gutzkow
- Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Division of Climate and Environment, Oslo, Norway
| | - Isabella Annesi-Maesano
- INSERM UMR1302, Montpellier University, Insitut Desbrest d'Épidémiologie et de Santé Publique (IDESP), Montpellier, France
| | - Sungho Won
- Interdisciplinary Program of Bioinformatics, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea; Department of Public Health Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea
| | - Marie-France Hivert
- Division of Chronic Disease Research Across the Lifecourse, Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Medical School and Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, MA, United States; Diabetes Unit, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
| | - M Daniele Fallin
- Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Marina Vafeiadi
- Department of Social Medicine, School of Medicine, University of Crete, Heraklion, Greece
| | - Ferran Ballester
- Epidemiology and Environmental Health Joint Research Unit, FISABIO-Universitat Jaume I-Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain; School of Nursing, Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain
| | - Mariona Bustamante
- Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain; ISGlobal, Barcelona, Spain; Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sabrina Llop
- Epidemiology and Environmental Health Joint Research Unit, FISABIO-Universitat Jaume I-Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain; Spanish Consortium for Research on Epidemiology and Public Health (CIBERESP), Madrid, Spain
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13
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Cayir A. RNA modifications as emerging therapeutic targets. WILEY INTERDISCIPLINARY REVIEWS. RNA 2021; 13:e1702. [PMID: 34816607 DOI: 10.1002/wrna.1702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2021] [Revised: 10/26/2021] [Accepted: 10/29/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The field of epitranscriptome, posttranscriptional modifications to RNAs, is still growing up and has presented substantial evidences for the role of RNA modifications in diseases. In terms of new drug development, RNA modifications have a great promise for therapy. For example, more than 170 type of modifications exist in various types of RNAs. Regulatory genes and their roles in critical biological process have been identified and they are associated with several diseases. Current data, for example, identification of inhibitors targeting RNA modifications regulatory genes, strongly support the idea that RNA modifications have potential as emerging therapeutic targets. Therefore, in this review, RNA modifications and regulatory genes were comprehensively documented in terms of drug development by summarizing the findings from previous studies. It was discussed how RNA modifications or regulatory genes can be targeted by altering molecular mechanisms. This article is categorized under: RNA in Disease and Development > RNA in Disease RNA Interactions with Proteins and Other Molecules > Protein-RNA Interactions: Functional Implications RNA Processing > RNA Editing and Modification.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akin Cayir
- Vocational Health College, Canakkale Onsekiz Mart University, Canakkale, Turkey.,Akershus Universitetssykehus, Medical Department, Lørenskog, Norway
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14
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Choi J, Bodenstein DF, Geraci J, Andreazza AC. Evaluation of postmortem microarray data in bipolar disorder using traditional data comparison and artificial intelligence reveals novel gene targets. J Psychiatr Res 2021; 142:328-336. [PMID: 34419753 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.08.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2020] [Revised: 07/20/2021] [Accepted: 08/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Large-scale microarray studies on post-mortem brain tissues have been utilized to investigate the complex molecular pathology of bipolar disorder. However, a major challenge in characterizing the dysregulation of gene expression in patients with bipolar disorder includes the lack of convergence between different studies, limiting comprehensive understanding from individual results. In this study, we aimed to identify genes that are both validated in published literature and are important classification features of unsupervised machine learning analysis of Stanley Brain Bank microarray database, followed by augmented intelligence method to identify distinct patient molecular subgroups. Through combining traditional literature approaches and machine learning, we identified TBL1XR1, SMARCA2, and CHMP5 to be replicated in 3 of the 4 studies included our analysis. The expression of these genes segregated unique subgroups of patients with bipolar disorder. Our study suggests the involvement of PPARγ pathway regulation in patients with bipolar disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jaehyoung Choi
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - David F Bodenstein
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Joseph Geraci
- NetraMark Corp, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, Queen's University, Kingston, ON, Canada; Centre for Biotechnology and Genomics Medicine, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA, United States
| | - Ana C Andreazza
- Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada.
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15
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Lauschke K, Treschow AF, Rasmussen MA, Davidsen N, Holst B, Emnéus J, Taxvig C, Vinggaard AM. Creating a human-induced pluripotent stem cell-based NKX2.5 reporter gene assay for developmental toxicity testing. Arch Toxicol 2021; 95:1659-1670. [PMID: 33660062 PMCID: PMC8113199 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-021-03018-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2020] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
To test large numbers of chemicals for developmental toxicity, rapid in vitro tests with standardized readouts for automated data acquisition are needed. However, the most widely used assay, the embryonic stem cell test, relies on the counting of beating embryoid bodies by visual inspection, which is laborious and time consuming. We previously developed the PluriBeat assay based on differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) that we demonstrated to be predictive for known teratogens at relevant concentrations using the readout of beating cardiomyocytes. Here, we report the development of a novel assay, which we term the PluriLum assay, where we have introduced a luciferase reporter gene into the locus of NKX2.5 of our hiPSC line. This enabled us to measure luminescence intensities instead of counting beating cardiomyocytes, which is less labor intensive. We established two NKX2.5 reporter cell lines and validated their pluripotency and genetic stability. Moreover, we confirmed that the genetically engineered NKX2.5 reporter cell line differentiated into cardiomyocytes with the same efficiency as the original wild-type line. We then exposed the cells to valproic acid (25–300 μM) and thalidomide (0.1–36 µM) and compared the PluriBeat readout of the cardiomyocytes with the luminescence intensity of the PluriLum assay. The results showed that thalidomide decreased luminescence intensity significantly with a higher potency and efficacy compared to the beating readout. With this, we have developed a novel hiPSC-based assay with a standardized readout that may have the potential for higher throughput screening for developmental toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karin Lauschke
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet, Building 201, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.,Department for Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Andreas Frederik Treschow
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet, Building 201, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.,Bioneer A/S, Hørsholm, Denmark
| | | | - Nichlas Davidsen
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet, Building 201, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | | | - Jenny Emnéus
- Department for Biotechnology and Biomedicine, Technical University of Denmark, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Camilla Taxvig
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet, Building 201, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark
| | - Anne Marie Vinggaard
- National Food Institute, Technical University of Denmark, Kemitorvet, Building 201, 2800, Kongens Lyngby, Denmark.
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16
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Meisig J, Dreser N, Kapitza M, Henry M, Rotshteyn T, Rahnenführer J, Hengstler J, Sachinidis A, Waldmann T, Leist M, Blüthgen N. Kinetic modeling of stem cell transcriptome dynamics to identify regulatory modules of normal and disturbed neuroectodermal differentiation. Nucleic Acids Res 2020; 48:12577-12592. [PMID: 33245762 PMCID: PMC7736781 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkaa1089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2020] [Revised: 10/21/2020] [Accepted: 10/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Thousands of transcriptome data sets are available, but approaches for their use in dynamic cell response modelling are few, especially for processes affected simultaneously by two orthogonal influencing variables. We approached this problem for neuroepithelial development of human pluripotent stem cells (differentiation variable), in the presence or absence of valproic acid (signaling variable). Using few basic assumptions (sequential differentiation states of cells; discrete on/off states for individual genes in these states), and time-resolved transcriptome data, a comprehensive model of spontaneous and perturbed gene expression dynamics was developed. The model made reliable predictions (average correlation of 0.85 between predicted and subsequently tested expression values). Even regulations predicted to be non-monotonic were successfully validated by PCR in new sets of experiments. Transient patterns of gene regulation were identified from model predictions. They pointed towards activation of Wnt signaling as a candidate pathway leading to a redirection of differentiation away from neuroepithelial cells towards neural crest. Intervention experiments, using a Wnt/beta-catenin antagonist, led to a phenotypic rescue of this disturbed differentiation. Thus, our broadly applicable model allows the analysis of transcriptome changes in complex time/perturbation matrices.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Meisig
- Institute of Pathology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- IRI Life Sciences, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany
| | - Nadine Dreser
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Marion Kapitza
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Margit Henry
- Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Neurophysiology, University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Tamara Rotshteyn
- Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Neurophysiology, University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Jörg Rahnenführer
- Department of Statistics, TU Dortmund University, 44221 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Jan G Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors (IfADo), TU Dortmund University, 44139 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Agapios Sachinidis
- Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Neurophysiology, University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, 50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Tanja Waldmann
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Marcel Leist
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Nils Blüthgen
- Institute of Pathology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin, 10117 Berlin, Germany
- IRI Life Sciences, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, 10117 Berlin, Germany
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17
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Marx-Stoelting P, Solano MDLM, Aoyama H, Adams RH, Bal-Price A, Buschmann J, Chahoud I, Clark R, Fang T, Fujiwara M, Gelinsky M, Grote K, Horimoto M, Bennekou SH, Kellner R, Kuwagata M, Leist M, Lang A, Li W, Mantovani A, Makris SL, Paumgartten F, Perron M, Sachana M, Schmitt A, Schneider S, Schönfelder G, Schulze F, Shiota K, Solecki R. 25th anniversary of the Berlin workshop on developmental toxicology: DevTox database update, challenges in risk assessment of developmental neurotoxicity and alternative methodologies in bone development and growth. Reprod Toxicol 2020; 100:155-162. [PMID: 33278556 DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2020.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2020] [Revised: 11/06/2020] [Accepted: 11/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
25 years after the first Berlin Workshop on Developmental Toxicity this 10th Berlin Workshop aimed to bring together international experts from authorities, academia and industry to consider scientific, methodologic and regulatory aspects in risk assessment of developmental toxicity and to debate alternative strategies in testing developmental effects in the future. Proposals for improvement of the categorization of developmental effects were discussed as well as the update of the DevTox database as valuable tool for harmonization. The development of adverse outcome pathways relevant to developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) was debated as a fundamental improvement to guide the screening and testing for DNT using alternatives to animal methods. A further focus was the implementation of an in vitro mechanism-based battery, which can support various regulatory applications associated with the assessment of chemicals and mixtures. More interdisciplinary and translation research should be initiated to accelerate the development of new technologies to test developmental toxicity. Technologies in the pipeline are (i) high throughput imaging techniques, (ii) models for DNT screening tests, (iii) use of computer tomography for assessment of thoracolumbar supernumerary ribs in animal models, and (iv) 3D biofabrication of bone development and regeneration tissue models. In addition, increased collaboration with the medical community was suggested to improve the relevance of test results to humans and identify more clinically relevant endpoints. Finally, the participants agreed that this conference facilitated better understanding innovative approaches that can be useful for the identification of developmental health risks due to exposure to chemical substances.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Ralf H Adams
- Max Planck Institute for Molecular Biomedicine, Muenster, Germany
| | - Anna Bal-Price
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), Ispra, Italy
| | | | - Ibrahim Chahoud
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Germany
| | - Ruth Clark
- Ruth Clark Associates Ltd., United Kingdom
| | - Tian Fang
- NHC Key Lab. of Reproduction Regulation (Shanghai Institute of Planned Parenthood Research), Fudan University, China
| | | | | | - Konstanze Grote
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Germany
| | | | | | - Rupert Kellner
- Fraunhofer Institute for Toxicology and Experimental Medicine, Hannover, Germany
| | | | | | - Annemarie Lang
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Germany
| | - Weihua Li
- NHC Key Lab. of Reproduction Regulation (Shanghai Institute of Planned Parenthood Research), Fudan University, China
| | | | - Susan L Makris
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Research and Development, Center for Public Health and Environmental Assessment, Washington, D.C., USA
| | | | - Monique Perron
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Office of Pesticides Programs, Washington, D.C, USA
| | - Magdalini Sachana
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Environment Health and Safety Division, Paris, France
| | - Anne Schmitt
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Gilbert Schönfelder
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Berlin, Germany; Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität Zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health, Germany
| | - Frank Schulze
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Roland Solecki
- German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Berlin, Germany
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18
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Jaklin M, Zhang JD, Barrow P, Ebeling M, Clemann N, Leist M, Kustermann S. Focus on germ-layer markers: A human stem cell-based model for in vitro teratogenicity testing. Reprod Toxicol 2020; 98:286-298. [DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2020.10.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2020] [Revised: 10/20/2020] [Accepted: 10/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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19
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Seidel F. Reproductive toxicity of boron. EXCLI JOURNAL 2020; 19:1184-1185. [PMID: 33088258 PMCID: PMC7573189 DOI: 10.17179/excli2020-2757] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/02/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Florian Seidel
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Ardeystr. 67, 44139 Dortmund, Germany
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20
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Albrecht W. Which concentrations are optimal for in vitro testing? EXCLI JOURNAL 2020; 19:1172-1173. [PMID: 33088256 PMCID: PMC7573170 DOI: 10.17179/excli2020-2761] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/11/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Wiebke Albrecht
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Ardeystr. 67, 44139 Dortmund, Germany
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21
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Seidel F. Reproductive toxicity of benzophenone-3. Arch Toxicol 2020; 94:3593-3594. [PMID: 32918560 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-020-02865-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/04/2020] [Accepted: 08/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Florian Seidel
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Ardeystr 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
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22
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Brecklinghaus T. Roadmap for the development of alternative test methods. Arch Toxicol 2020; 94:3597-3598. [PMID: 32857209 PMCID: PMC7502054 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-020-02888-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2020] [Accepted: 08/18/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Tim Brecklinghaus
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Ardeystr 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
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23
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Aluminium affects neurospheres at human in vivo relevant concentrations. Arch Toxicol 2020; 94:3601-3602. [PMID: 32840640 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-020-02889-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/17/2020] [Accepted: 08/18/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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24
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Bolt HM. Testing of female reproductive disorders. Arch Toxicol 2020; 94:3579-3580. [PMID: 32839845 PMCID: PMC7502046 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-020-02883-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2020] [Accepted: 08/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Hermann M Bolt
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Ardeystr. 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
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25
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The EU-ToxRisk method documentation, data processing and chemical testing pipeline for the regulatory use of new approach methods. Arch Toxicol 2020; 94:2435-2461. [PMID: 32632539 PMCID: PMC7367925 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-020-02802-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2020] [Accepted: 06/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Hazard assessment, based on new approach methods (NAM), requires the use of batteries of assays, where individual tests may be contributed by different laboratories. A unified strategy for such collaborative testing is presented. It details all procedures required to allow test information to be usable for integrated hazard assessment, strategic project decisions and/or for regulatory purposes. The EU-ToxRisk project developed a strategy to provide regulatorily valid data, and exemplified this using a panel of > 20 assays (with > 50 individual endpoints), each exposed to 19 well-known test compounds (e.g. rotenone, colchicine, mercury, paracetamol, rifampicine, paraquat, taxol). Examples of strategy implementation are provided for all aspects required to ensure data validity: (i) documentation of test methods in a publicly accessible database; (ii) deposition of standard operating procedures (SOP) at the European Union DB-ALM repository; (iii) test readiness scoring accoding to defined criteria; (iv) disclosure of the pipeline for data processing; (v) link of uncertainty measures and metadata to the data; (vi) definition of test chemicals, their handling and their behavior in test media; (vii) specification of the test purpose and overall evaluation plans. Moreover, data generation was exemplified by providing results from 25 reporter assays. A complete evaluation of the entire test battery will be described elsewhere. A major learning from the retrospective analysis of this large testing project was the need for thorough definitions of the above strategy aspects, ideally in form of a study pre-registration, to allow adequate interpretation of the data and to ensure overall scientific/toxicological validity.
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26
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Sachinidis A. Cardiotoxicity and Heart Failure: Lessons from Human-Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes and Anticancer Drugs. Cells 2020; 9:cells9041001. [PMID: 32316481 PMCID: PMC7226145 DOI: 10.3390/cells9041001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2020] [Revised: 04/14/2020] [Accepted: 04/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) are discussed as disease modeling for optimization and adaptation of therapy to each individual. However, the fundamental question is still under debate whether stem-cell-based disease modeling and drug discovery are applicable for recapitulating pathological processes under in vivo conditions. Drug treatment and exposure to different chemicals and environmental factors can initiate diseases due to toxicity effects in humans. It is well documented that drug-induced cardiotoxicity accelerates the development of heart failure (HF). Until now, investigations on the understanding of mechanisms involved in HF by anticancer drugs are hindered by limitations of the available cellular models which are relevant for human physiology and by the fact that the clinical manifestation of HF often occurs several years after its initiation. Recently, we identified similar genomic biomarkers as observed by HF after short treatment of hiPSCs-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) with different antitumor drugs such as anthracyclines and etoposide (ETP). Moreover, we identified common cardiotoxic biological processes and signal transduction pathways which are discussed as being crucial for the survival and function of cardiomyocytes and, therefore, for the development of HF. In the present review, I discuss the applicability of the in vitro cardiotoxicity test systems as modeling for discovering preventive mechanisms/targets against cardiotoxicity and, therefore, for novel HF therapeutic concepts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agapios Sachinidis
- Faculty of Medicine, Institute of Neurophysiology, University of Cologne, Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931 Cologne, Germany;
- Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne, Robert-Koch-Str. 21, 50931 Cologne, Germany
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27
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Yang L, Zhang Y, Wang F, Luo Z, Guo S, Strähle U. Toxicity of mercury: Molecular evidence. CHEMOSPHERE 2020; 245:125586. [PMID: 31881386 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2019.125586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 144] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2019] [Revised: 11/28/2019] [Accepted: 12/08/2019] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Minamata disease in Japan and the large-scale poisoning by methylmercury (MeHg) in Iraq caused wide public concerns about the risk emanating from mercury for human health. Nowadays, it is widely known that all forms of mercury induce toxic effects in mammals, and increasing evidence supports the concern that environmentally relevant levels of MeHg could impact normal biological functions in wildlife. The information of mechanism involved in mercurial toxicity is growing but knowledge gaps still exist between the adverse effects and mechanisms of action, especially at the molecular level. A body of data obtained from experimental studies on mechanisms of mercurial toxicity in vivo and in vitro points to that disruption of the antioxidant system may play an important role in the mercurial toxic effects. Moreover, the accumulating evidence indicates that signaling transduction, protein or/and enzyme activity, and gene regulation are involving in mediating toxic and adaptive response to mercury exposure. We conducted here a comprehensive review of mercurial toxic effects on wildlife and human, in particular synthesized key findings of molecular pathways involved in mercurial toxicity from the cells to human. We discuss the molecular evidence related mercurial toxicity to the adverse effects, with particular emphasis on the gene regulation. The further studies relying on Omic analysis connected to adverse effects and modes of action of mercury will aid in the evaluation and validation of causative relationship between health outcomes and gene expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lixin Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, 100012, Beijing, China; Center for Global Health, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, 211166, Nanjing, China.
| | - Yuanyuan Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, 100012, Beijing, China
| | - Feifei Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, 100012, Beijing, China
| | - Zidie Luo
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, 100012, Beijing, China
| | - Shaojuan Guo
- State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, 100012, Beijing, China
| | - Uwe Strähle
- Toxicology and Genetics, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344, Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany
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28
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Seidel F. Rosette formation and transcriptome changes for in vitro prediction of developmental toxicity. Arch Toxicol 2019; 94:349-350. [PMID: 31828356 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-019-02639-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2019] [Accepted: 12/02/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Florian Seidel
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Ardeystr. 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
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29
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Development of a neural rosette formation assay (RoFA) to identify neurodevelopmental toxicants and to characterize their transcriptome disturbances. Arch Toxicol 2019; 94:151-171. [PMID: 31712839 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-019-02612-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2019] [Accepted: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The first in vitro tests for developmental toxicity made use of rodent cells. Newer teratology tests, e.g. developed during the ESNATS project, use human cells and measure mechanistic endpoints (such as transcriptome changes). However, the toxicological implications of mechanistic parameters are hard to judge, without functional/morphological endpoints. To address this issue, we developed a new version of the human stem cell-based test STOP-tox(UKN). For this purpose, the capacity of the cells to self-organize to neural rosettes was assessed as functional endpoint: pluripotent stem cells were allowed to differentiate into neuroepithelial cells for 6 days in the presence or absence of toxicants. Then, both transcriptome changes were measured (standard STOP-tox(UKN)) and cells were allowed to form rosettes. After optimization of staining methods, an imaging algorithm for rosette quantification was implemented and used for an automated rosette formation assay (RoFA). Neural tube toxicants (like valproic acid), which are known to disturb human development at stages when rosette-forming cells are present, were used as positive controls. Established toxicants led to distinctly different tissue organization and differentiation stages. RoFA outcome and transcript changes largely correlated concerning (1) the concentration-dependence, (2) the time dependence, and (3) the set of positive hits identified amongst 24 potential toxicants. Using such comparative data, a prediction model for the RoFA was developed. The comparative analysis was also used to identify gene dysregulations that are particularly predictive for disturbed rosette formation. This 'RoFA predictor gene set' may be used for a simplified and less costly setup of the STOP-tox(UKN) assay.
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30
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Seidel F. Stem cell-based test methods. EXCLI JOURNAL 2019; 18:442-444. [PMID: 31423122 PMCID: PMC6694699 DOI: 10.17179/excli2019-1550] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2019] [Accepted: 06/19/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Florian Seidel
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors
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31
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Sachinidis A, Albrecht W, Nell P, Cherianidou A, Hewitt NJ, Edlund K, Hengstler JG. Road Map for Development of Stem Cell-Based Alternative Test Methods. Trends Mol Med 2019; 25:470-481. [PMID: 31130451 DOI: 10.1016/j.molmed.2019.04.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2019] [Revised: 03/28/2019] [Accepted: 04/02/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Much progress has been made in establishing strategies for differentiation of induced human pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs). However, differentiated hiPSCs are not yet routinely used for prediction of toxicity. Here, limiting factors are summarised and possibilities for improvement are discussed, with a focus on hepatocytes, cardiomyocytes, tubular epithelial cells, and developmental toxicity. Moreover, we make recommendations for further fine-tuning of differentiation protocols for hiPSCs to hepatocyte-like cells by comparing individual steps of currently available protocols to the mechanisms occurring during embryonic development. A road map is proposed to facilitate test system development, including a description of the most useful performance metrics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agapios Sachinidis
- Institute of Neurophysiology and Centre for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne (UKK), Cologne, Germany.
| | - Wiebke Albrecht
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), 44139 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Patrick Nell
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), 44139 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Anna Cherianidou
- Institute of Neurophysiology and Centre for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne (UKK), Cologne, Germany
| | | | - Karolina Edlund
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), 44139 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Jan G Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), 44139 Dortmund, Germany.
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32
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Bolt HM. Highlight report: Cell type selection for toxicity testing. EXCLI JOURNAL 2019; 17:1180-1181. [PMID: 30713478 PMCID: PMC6341425 DOI: 10.17179/excli2018-2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Download PDF] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2018] [Accepted: 12/18/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- H M Bolt
- IfADo - Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors, Dortmund, GERMANY
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33
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Toxicogenomics directory of rat hepatotoxicants in vivo and in cultivated hepatocytes. Arch Toxicol 2018; 92:3517-3533. [DOI: 10.1007/s00204-018-2352-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2018] [Accepted: 11/08/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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34
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Seidel F. Highlight report: Stem cell-based developmental toxicity tests. Arch Toxicol 2018; 92:3609-3610. [PMID: 30478605 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-018-2357-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2018] [Accepted: 11/19/2018] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Florian Seidel
- IfADo, Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at TU Dortmund, Ardeystr. 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
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35
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Highlight report: the need of 'fit-for-purpose' controls for cell lines used in toxicity assays. Arch Toxicol 2018; 92:3605-3606. [PMID: 30430188 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-018-2348-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2018] [Accepted: 11/08/2018] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
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36
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Relevance of the incubation period in cytotoxicity testing with primary human hepatocytes. Arch Toxicol 2018; 92:3505-3515. [DOI: 10.1007/s00204-018-2302-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/26/2018] [Accepted: 09/04/2018] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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37
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Bal-Price A, Hogberg HT, Crofton KM, Daneshian M, FitzGerald RE, Fritsche E, Heinonen T, Hougaard Bennekou S, Klima S, Piersma AH, Sachana M, Shafer TJ, Terron A, Monnet-Tschudi F, Viviani B, Waldmann T, Westerink RHS, Wilks MF, Witters H, Zurich MG, Leist M. Recommendation on test readiness criteria for new approach methods in toxicology: Exemplified for developmental neurotoxicity. ALTEX-ALTERNATIVES TO ANIMAL EXPERIMENTATION 2018; 35:306-352. [PMID: 29485663 DOI: 10.14573/altex.1712081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2017] [Accepted: 01/29/2018] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Multiple non-animal-based test methods have never been formally validated. In order to use such new approach methods (NAMs) in a regulatory context, criteria to define their readiness are necessary. The field of developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) testing is used to exemplify the application of readiness criteria. The costs and number of untested chemicals are overwhelming for in vivo DNT testing. Thus, there is a need for inexpensive, high-throughput NAMs, to obtain initial information on potential hazards, and to allow prioritization for further testing. A background on the regulatory and scientific status of DNT testing is provided showing different types of test readiness levels, depending on the intended use of data from NAMs. Readiness criteria, compiled during a stakeholder workshop, uniting scientists from academia, industry and regulatory authorities are presented. An important step beyond the listing of criteria, was the suggestion for a preliminary scoring scheme. On this basis a (semi)-quantitative analysis process was assembled on test readiness of 17 NAMs with respect to various uses (e.g. prioritization/screening, risk assessment). The scoring results suggest that several assays are currently at high readiness levels. Therefore, suggestions are made on how DNT NAMs may be assembled into an integrated approach to testing and assessment (IATA). In parallel, the testing state in these assays was compiled for more than 1000 compounds. Finally, a vision is presented on how further NAM development may be guided by knowledge of signaling pathways necessary for brain development, DNT pathophysiology, and relevant adverse outcome pathways (AOP).
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Affiliation(s)
- Anna Bal-Price
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (EC JRC), Ispra (VA), Italy
| | - Helena T Hogberg
- Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT), Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Kevin M Crofton
- National Centre for Computational Toxicology, US EPA, RTP, Washington, NC, USA
| | - Mardas Daneshian
- Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing, CAAT-Europe, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Rex E FitzGerald
- Swiss Centre for Human Applied Toxicology, SCAHT, University of Basle, Switzerland
| | - Ellen Fritsche
- IUF - Leibniz Research Institute for Environmental Medicine & Heinrich-Heine-University, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Tuula Heinonen
- Finnish Centre for Alternative Methods (FICAM), University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland
| | | | - Stefanie Klima
- In vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Aldert H Piersma
- RIVM, National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, Bilthoven, and Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Magdalini Sachana
- Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Paris, France
| | - Timothy J Shafer
- National Centre for Computational Toxicology, US EPA, RTP, Washington, NC, USA
| | | | - Florianne Monnet-Tschudi
- Swiss Centre for Human Applied Toxicology, SCAHT, University of Basle, Switzerland.,Department of Physiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Barbara Viviani
- Department of Pharmacological and Biomolecular Sciences, University of Milan, Italy
| | - Tanja Waldmann
- In vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Remco H S Westerink
- Neurotoxicology Research Group, Institute for Risk Assessment Sciences (IRAS), Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Martin F Wilks
- Swiss Centre for Human Applied Toxicology, SCAHT, University of Basle, Switzerland
| | - Hilda Witters
- VITO, Flemish Institute for Technological Research, Unit Environmental Risk and Health, Mol, Belgium
| | - Marie-Gabrielle Zurich
- Swiss Centre for Human Applied Toxicology, SCAHT, University of Basle, Switzerland.,Department of Physiology, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Marcel Leist
- Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing, CAAT-Europe, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany.,In vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
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Delp J, Gutbier S, Cerff M, Zasada C, Niedenführ S, Zhao L, Smirnova L, Hartung T, Borlinghaus H, Schreiber F, Bergemann J, Gätgens J, Beyss M, Azzouzi S, Waldmann T, Kempa S, Nöh K, Leist M. Stage-specific metabolic features of differentiating neurons: Implications for toxicant sensitivity. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2017; 354:64-80. [PMID: 29278688 DOI: 10.1016/j.taap.2017.12.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2017] [Revised: 12/19/2017] [Accepted: 12/22/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) may be induced when chemicals disturb a key neurodevelopmental process, and many tests focus on this type of toxicity. Alternatively, DNT may occur when chemicals are cytotoxic only during a specific neurodevelopmental stage. The toxicant sensitivity is affected by the expression of toxicant targets and by resilience factors. Although cellular metabolism plays an important role, little is known how it changes during human neurogenesis, and how potential alterations affect toxicant sensitivity of mature vs. immature neurons. We used immature (d0) and mature (d6) LUHMES cells (dopaminergic human neurons) to provide initial answers to these questions. Transcriptome profiling and characterization of energy metabolism suggested a switch from predominantly glycolytic energy generation to a more pronounced contribution of the tricarboxylic acid cycle (TCA) during neuronal maturation. Therefore, we used pulsed stable isotope-resolved metabolomics (pSIRM) to determine intracellular metabolite pool sizes (concentrations), and isotopically non-stationary 13C-metabolic flux analysis (INST 13C-MFA) to calculate metabolic fluxes. We found that d0 cells mainly use glutamine to fuel the TCA. Furthermore, they rely on extracellular pyruvate to allow continuous growth. This metabolic situation does not allow for mitochondrial or glycolytic spare capacity, i.e. the ability to adapt energy generation to altered needs. Accordingly, neuronal precursor cells displayed a higher sensitivity to several mitochondrial toxicants than mature neurons differentiated from them. In summary, this study shows that precursor cells lose their glutamine dependency during differentiation while they gain flexibility of energy generation and thereby increase their resistance to low concentrations of mitochondrial toxicants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Delp
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Simon Gutbier
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Martin Cerff
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences, IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich 52425, Germany
| | - Christin Zasada
- Max-Delbrück-Center of Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Berlin 13125, Germany
| | - Sebastian Niedenführ
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences, IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich 52425, Germany
| | - Liang Zhao
- Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT), Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Lena Smirnova
- Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT), Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Thomas Hartung
- Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT), Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Hanna Borlinghaus
- Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Falk Schreiber
- Department of Computer and Information Science, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany; Faculty of Information Technology, Monash University, Melbourne, Australia
| | - Jörg Bergemann
- Department of Life Sciences, Albstadt-Sigmaringen University of Applied Sciences, Sigmaringen, Germany
| | - Jochem Gätgens
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences, IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich 52425, Germany
| | - Martin Beyss
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences, IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich 52425, Germany
| | - Salah Azzouzi
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences, IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich 52425, Germany
| | - Tanja Waldmann
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Stefan Kempa
- Max-Delbrück-Center of Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Berlin 13125, Germany
| | - Katharina Nöh
- Institute of Bio- and Geosciences, IBG-1: Biotechnology, Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Jülich 52425, Germany
| | - Marcel Leist
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Dept Inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Foundation, University of Konstanz, 78457 Konstanz, Germany; CAAT-Europe, University of Konstanz, Konstanz 78457, Germany.
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Leist M. New animal-free concepts and test methods for developmental toxicity and peripheral neurotoxicity. Altern Lab Anim 2017; 45:253-260. [PMID: 29112453 DOI: 10.1177/026119291704500505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The complex toxicological fields of repeat dose organ toxicity (RDT) and developmental and reproductive toxicity (DART) still require new concepts and approaches to achieve a fully animal-free safety assessment of chemicals. One novel approach is the generation of relevant human cell types from pluripotent stem cells, and the use of such cells for the establishment of phenotypic test methods. Due to their broad endpoints, such tests capture multiple types of toxicants, i.e. they are a readout for the activation of many adverse outcome pathways (AOPs). The 2016 Lush Science Prize was awarded for the development of one such assay, the PeriTox test, which uses human peripheral neurons generated from stem cells. The assay endpoints measure various cell functions, and these give information on the potential neurotoxicity and developmental neurotoxicity hazard of test compounds. The PeriTox test method has a high predictivity and sensitivity for peripheral neurotoxicants, and thus addresses the inherent challenges in pesticide testing and drug development. Data from the test can be obtained quickly and at a relatively high-throughput, and thus, the assay has the potential to replace animal-based safety assessment during early product development or for screening potential environmental toxicants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marcel Leist
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine Laboratory, Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany; CAAT-Europe, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany; Konstanz Research School Chemical Biology, Konstanz, Germany; Co-operative Research Training Group on In Vitro Testing of Active Ingredients, Konstanz-Sigmaringen, Germany
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40
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Bolt HM. Stem cells in toxicological research. Arch Toxicol 2017; 91:4029-4030. [PMID: 29143079 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-017-2120-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2017] [Accepted: 11/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Hermann M Bolt
- IfADo-Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at TU Dortmund, Ardeystr. 67, 44139, Dortmund, Germany.
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Leist M, Ghallab A, Graepel R, Marchan R, Hassan R, Bennekou SH, Limonciel A, Vinken M, Schildknecht S, Waldmann T, Danen E, van Ravenzwaay B, Kamp H, Gardner I, Godoy P, Bois FY, Braeuning A, Reif R, Oesch F, Drasdo D, Höhme S, Schwarz M, Hartung T, Braunbeck T, Beltman J, Vrieling H, Sanz F, Forsby A, Gadaleta D, Fisher C, Kelm J, Fluri D, Ecker G, Zdrazil B, Terron A, Jennings P, van der Burg B, Dooley S, Meijer AH, Willighagen E, Martens M, Evelo C, Mombelli E, Taboureau O, Mantovani A, Hardy B, Koch B, Escher S, van Thriel C, Cadenas C, Kroese D, van de Water B, Hengstler JG. Adverse outcome pathways: opportunities, limitations and open questions. Arch Toxicol 2017; 91:3477-3505. [DOI: 10.1007/s00204-017-2045-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 227] [Impact Index Per Article: 32.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2017] [Accepted: 08/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
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Combination of multiple neural crest migration assays to identify environmental toxicants from a proof-of-concept chemical library. Arch Toxicol 2017; 91:3613-3632. [PMID: 28477266 DOI: 10.1007/s00204-017-1977-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2016] [Accepted: 04/26/2017] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Many in vitro tests have been developed to screen for potential neurotoxicity. However, only few cell function-based tests have been used for comparative screening, and thus experience is scarce on how to confirm and evaluate screening hits. We addressed these questions for the neural crest cell migration test (cMINC). After an initial screen, a hit follow-up strategy was devised. A library of 75 compounds plus internal controls (NTP80-list), assembled by the National Toxicology Program of the USA (NTP) was used. It contained some known classes of (developmental) neurotoxic compounds. The primary screen yielded 23 confirmed hits, which comprised ten flame retardants, seven pesticides and six drug-like compounds. Comparison of concentration-response curves for migration and viability showed that all hits were specific. The extent to which migration was inhibited was 25-90%, and two organochlorine pesticides (DDT, heptachlor) were most efficient. In the second part of this study, (1) the cMINC assay was repeated under conditions that prevent proliferation; (2) a transwell migration assay was used as a different type of migration assay; (3) cells were traced to assess cell speed. Some toxicants had largely varying effects between assays, but each hit was confirmed in at least one additional test. This comparative study allows an estimate on how confidently the primary hits from a cell function-based screen can be considered as toxicants disturbing a key neurodevelopmental process. Testing of the NTP80-list in more assays will be highly interesting to assemble a test battery and to build prediction models for developmental toxicity.
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Shinde V, Perumal Srinivasan S, Henry M, Rotshteyn T, Hescheler J, Rahnenführer J, Grinberg M, Meisig J, Blüthgen N, Waldmann T, Leist M, Hengstler JG, Sachinidis A. Comparison of a teratogenic transcriptome-based predictive test based on human embryonic versus inducible pluripotent stem cells. Stem Cell Res Ther 2016; 7:190. [PMID: 28038682 PMCID: PMC5203708 DOI: 10.1186/s13287-016-0449-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2016] [Revised: 11/21/2016] [Accepted: 12/01/2016] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) partially recapitulate early embryonic three germ layer development, allowing testing of potential teratogenic hazards. Because use of hESCs is ethically debated, we investigated the potential for human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) to replace hESCs in such tests. METHODS Three cell lines, comprising hiPSCs (foreskin and IMR90) and hESCs (H9) were differentiated for 14 days. Their transcriptome profiles were obtained on day 0 and day 14 and analyzed by comprehensive bioinformatics tools. RESULTS The transcriptomes on day 14 showed that more than 70% of the "developmental genes" (regulated genes with > 2-fold change on day 14 compared to day 0) exhibited variability among cell lines. The developmental genes belonging to all three cell lines captured biological processes and KEGG pathways related to all three germ layer embryonic development. In addition, transcriptome profiles were obtained after 14 days of exposure to teratogenic valproic acid (VPA) during differentiation. Although the differentially regulated genes between treated and untreated samples showed more than 90% variability among cell lines, VPA clearly antagonized the expression of developmental genes in all cell lines: suppressing upregulated developmental genes, while inducing downregulated ones. To quantify VPA-disturbed development based on developmental genes, we estimated the "developmental potency" (D p ) and "developmental index" (D i ). CONCLUSIONS Despite differences in genes deregulated by VPA, uniform D i values were obtained for all three cell lines. Given that the D i values for VPA were similar for hESCs and hiPSCs, D i can be used for robust hazard identification, irrespective of whether hESCs or hiPSCs are used in the test systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vaibhav Shinde
- Institute of Neurophysiology and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne (UKK), Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Sureshkumar Perumal Srinivasan
- Institute of Neurophysiology and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne (UKK), Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Margit Henry
- Institute of Neurophysiology and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne (UKK), Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Tamara Rotshteyn
- Institute of Neurophysiology and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne (UKK), Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Jürgen Hescheler
- Institute of Neurophysiology and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne (UKK), Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany
| | - Jörg Rahnenführer
- Department of Statistics, Technical University of Dortmund University, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Marianna Grinberg
- Department of Statistics, Technical University of Dortmund University, 44227, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Johannes Meisig
- Integrative Research Institute for the Life Sciences, Institute for Theoretical Biology, Humboldt University, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Nils Blüthgen
- Integrative Research Institute for the Life Sciences, Institute for Theoretical Biology, Humboldt University, 10115, Berlin, Germany
| | - Tanja Waldmann
- Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair for In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, University of Konstanz, Box: M657, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Marcel Leist
- Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair for In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, University of Konstanz, Box: M657, 78457, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Jan Georg Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors at the Technical University of Dortmund (IfADo), 44139, Dortmund, Germany
| | - Agapios Sachinidis
- Institute of Neurophysiology and Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC), University of Cologne (UKK), Robert-Koch-Str. 39, 50931, Cologne, Germany.
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Waldmann T, Grinberg M, König A, Rempel E, Schildknecht S, Henry M, Holzer AK, Dreser N, Shinde V, Sachinidis A, Rahnenführer J, Hengstler JG, Leist M. Stem Cell Transcriptome Responses and Corresponding Biomarkers That Indicate the Transition from Adaptive Responses to Cytotoxicity. Chem Res Toxicol 2016; 30:905-922. [PMID: 28001369 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrestox.6b00259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Analysis of transcriptome changes has become an established method to characterize the reaction of cells to toxicants. Such experiments are mostly performed at compound concentrations close to the cytotoxicity threshold. At present, little information is available on concentration-dependent features of transcriptome changes, in particular, at the transition from noncytotoxic concentrations to conditions that are associated with cell death. Thus, it is unclear in how far cell death confounds the results of transcriptome studies. To explore this gap of knowledge, we treated pluripotent stem cells differentiating to human neuroepithelial cells (UKN1 assay) for short periods (48 h) with increasing concentrations of valproic acid (VPA) and methyl mercury (MeHg), two compounds with vastly different modes of action. We developed various visualization tools to describe cellular responses, and the overall response was classified as "tolerance" (minor transcriptome changes), "functional adaptation" (moderate/strong transcriptome responses, but no cytotoxicity), and "degeneration". The latter two conditions were compared, using various statistical approaches. We identified (i) genes regulated at cytotoxic, but not at noncytotoxic, concentrations and (ii) KEGG pathways, gene ontology term groups, and superordinate biological processes that were only regulated at cytotoxic concentrations. The consensus markers and processes found after 48 h treatment were then overlaid with those found after prolonged (6 days) treatment. The study highlights the importance of careful concentration selection and of controlling viability for transcriptome studies. Moreover, it allowed identification of 39 candidate "biomarkers of cytotoxicity". These could serve to provide alerts that data sets of interest may have been affected by cell death in the model system studied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanja Waldmann
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair Foundation, University of Konstanz , 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Marianna Grinberg
- Department of Statistics, Technical University of Dortmund , D-44221 Dortmund, Germany
| | - André König
- Department of Statistics, Technical University of Dortmund , D-44221 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Eugen Rempel
- Department of Statistics, Technical University of Dortmund , D-44221 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Stefan Schildknecht
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair Foundation, University of Konstanz , 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Margit Henry
- Center of Physiology and Pathophysiology, Institute of Neurophysiology, University of Cologne (UKK) , D-50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Anna-Katharina Holzer
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair Foundation, University of Konstanz , 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Nadine Dreser
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair Foundation, University of Konstanz , 78457 Konstanz, Germany
| | - Vaibhav Shinde
- Center of Physiology and Pathophysiology, Institute of Neurophysiology, University of Cologne (UKK) , D-50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Agapios Sachinidis
- Center of Physiology and Pathophysiology, Institute of Neurophysiology, University of Cologne (UKK) , D-50931 Cologne, Germany
| | - Jörg Rahnenführer
- Department of Statistics, Technical University of Dortmund , D-44221 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Jan G Hengstler
- Leibniz Research Centre for Working Environment and Human Factors (IfADo), Technical University of Dortmund , D-44139 Dortmund, Germany
| | - Marcel Leist
- In Vitro Toxicology and Biomedicine, Department inaugurated by the Doerenkamp-Zbinden Chair Foundation, University of Konstanz , 78457 Konstanz, Germany
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