A simple gelatin aerogel tablet sorbent for the effective vortex assisted solid phase extraction of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons from tea samples

Benzo[b]fluoranthene induces male reproductive toxicity and apoptosis via Akt-Mdm2-p53 signaling axis in mouse Leydig cells: Integrating computational toxicology and experimental approaches

This study aims to explore the male reproductive toxicity of Benzo[b]fluoranthene (BbF) and related mechanisms. The results of computational toxicology analysis indicated male reproductive toxicity of BbF was related to apoptosis of Leydig cells and that Akt/p53 pathway might play a key role. In experiments, BbF induced testosterone decline, decreased concentration and motility of sperm and aggravated testicular pathological injury in mice. Besides, BbF led to apoptosis in Leydig cells, and decreased expressions of p-Akt and Bcl2, while improving the expressions of p53, Bax and Cleaved Caspase-3 in vivo and in vitro. Further, compared with BbF group, Akt activator SC79 significantly reduced cell apoptosis rate, improved cell viability, promoted the expressions of p-Akt and p-Mdm2, and reversed the above molecular expressions. Similarly, p53 inhibitor Pifithrin-α also significantly enhanced the cell vitality, alleviated the apoptosis of TM3 cells induced by BbF, and decreased the expressions of Bax and Cleaved Caspase-3, with the up-regulation of Bcl2. To sum up, by inhibiting Akt-Mdm2 signaling, BbF activated the p53-mediated mitochondrial apoptosis pathway, further inducing the apoptosis of Leydig cells, therefore resulting in testosterone decline and male reproductive damage. Besides, this study provided a valid mode integrating computational toxicology and experimental approaches in toxicity testing.

Carbonized loofah sponge-based solid-phase extraction of benzo[a]pyrene from fish followed by liquid chromatography-ultraviolet detection

A simple and sensitive method combining solid-phase extraction (SPE) and high-performance liquid chromatography-ultraviolet detection (HPLC-UV) was developed for the determination of benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) in fish. Loofah sponge (LS) was carbonized and used as an SPE adsorbent. Carbonization decreased the polarity of LS and enhanced its aromaticity. Carbonized loofah sponge (CLS) could capture BaP better through π-π interaction. The carbonization temperature and the SPE conditions were optimized. The linear range of the developed method was within 10-1000 ng g^-1 with a satisfactory correlation coefficient (R²) of 0.9999. The limit of detection (LOD) was 2.0 ng g^-1, which was below the maximum residue limit (5 μg kg^-1) in meat set by the European Union. The method showed good intra-day and inter-day precision with relative standard deviations (RSDs) ranging from 0.4% to 1.7%. Finally, the developed method was applied to the determination of BaP in fish samples. This method is low-cost and environmentally friendly with natural and renewable LS as raw material and it provides an alternative approach for the efficient and simple determination of BaP in aquatic products.