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Chang J, Huang R, Zhang Z, Pan Y, Ma Z, Wan B, Wang H. A ubiquitous tire rubber additive induced serious eye injury in zebrafish (Danio rerio). JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2024; 472:134461. [PMID: 38696959 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.134461] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2024] [Revised: 04/12/2024] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/04/2024]
Abstract
Previous studies have indicated that tire wear particles (TWPs) leachate exposure induced serious eye injury in fish through inhibiting the thyroid peroxidase (TPO) enzyme activity. However, the main TPO inhibitors in the leachate were still unknown. In this study, we identified 2-Mercaptobenzothiazole (MBT) as the potential TPO inhibitor in the TWPs leachate through references search, model prediction based on Danish QSAR and ToxCast database, molecular docking, and in vivo assay. We further explored the toxic mechanism of MBT under environmentally relevant concentrations. The decreased eye size of zebrafish larvae was mainly caused by the decreased lens diameter and cell density in the inner nuclear layer (INL) and outer nuclear layer (ONL) of the retina. Transcriptomics analysis demonstrated that the eye phototransduction function was significantly suppressed by inhibiting the photoreceptor cell proliferation process after MBT exposure. The altered opsin gene expression and decreased opsin protein levels were induced by weakening thyroid hormone signaling after MBT treatment. These results were comparable to those obtained from a known TPO inhibitor, methimazole. This study has identified MBT as the primary TPO inhibitor responsible for inducing eye impairment in zebrafish larvae exposed to TWPs leachate. It is crucial for reducing the toxicity of TWPs leachate in fish.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Chang
- Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shuangqing RD 18, Beijing 100085, China
| | - Rui Huang
- Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shuangqing RD 18, Beijing 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yuquan RD 19 a, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Zhaoguang Zhang
- North China Electric Power University, Beinong RD 2, Beijing 102206, China
| | - Yunrui Pan
- Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shuangqing RD 18, Beijing 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yuquan RD 19 a, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Zheng Ma
- Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shuangqing RD 18, Beijing 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yuquan RD 19 a, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Bin Wan
- Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shuangqing RD 18, Beijing 100085, China
| | - Huili Wang
- Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shuangqing RD 18, Beijing 100085, China.
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Gou X, Ma C, Ji H, Yan L, Wang P, Wang Z, Lin Y, Chatterjee N, Yu H, Zhang X. Prediction of zebrafish embryonic developmental toxicity by integrating omics with adverse outcome pathway. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2023; 448:130958. [PMID: 36860045 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.130958] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2022] [Revised: 01/09/2023] [Accepted: 02/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
New approach methodologies (NAMs), especially omics-based high-throughput bioassays have been developed rapidly, providing rich mechanistic information such as molecular initiation events (MIEs) and (sub)cellular key events (KEs) in adverse outcome pathways (AOPs). However, how to apply the knowledge of MIEs/KEs to predict adverse outcomes (AOs) induced by chemicals represents a new challenge for computational toxicology. Here, an integrated method named ScoreAOP was developed and evaluated to predict chemicals' developmental toxicity for zebrafish embryos by integrating four related AOPs and dose-dependent reduced zebrafish transcriptome (RZT). The rules of ScoreAOP included 1) sensitivity of responsive KEs demonstrated by point of departure of KEs (PODKE), 2) evidence reliability and 3) distance between KEs and AOs. Moreover, eleven chemicals with different modes of action (MoAs) were tested to evaluate ScoreAOP. Results showed that eight of the eleven chemicals caused developmental toxicity at tested concentration in apical tests. All the tested chemicals' developmental defects were predicted using ScoreAOP, whereas eight out of the eleven chemicals predicted by ScoreMIE which was developed to score MIEs disturbed by chemicals based on in vitro bioassays data. Finally, in terms of mechanism explanation, ScoreAOP clustered chemicals with different MoAs while ScoreMIE failed, and ScoreAOP revealed the activation of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) plays a significant role in dysfunction of cardiovascular system, resulting in zebrafish developmental defects and mortality. In conclusion, ScoreAOP represents a promising approach to apply mechanism information obtained from omics to predict AOs induced by chemicals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao Gou
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Cong Ma
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Huimin Ji
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Lu Yan
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Pingping Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Zhihao Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Yishan Lin
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Nivedita Chatterjee
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Hongxia Yu
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China
| | - Xiaowei Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control & Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210023, Jiangsu, China; Jiangsu Province Ecology and Environment Protection Key Laboratory of Chemical Safety and Health Risk, Nanjing 210023, China.
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Luconi M, Sogorb MA, Markert UR, Benfenati E, May T, Wolbank S, Roncaglioni A, Schmidt A, Straccia M, Tait S. Human-Based New Approach Methodologies in Developmental Toxicity Testing: A Step Ahead from the State of the Art with a Feto-Placental Organ-on-Chip Platform. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2022; 19:15828. [PMID: 36497907 PMCID: PMC9737555 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph192315828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2022] [Revised: 11/20/2022] [Accepted: 11/25/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Developmental toxicity testing urgently requires the implementation of human-relevant new approach methodologies (NAMs) that better recapitulate the peculiar nature of human physiology during pregnancy, especially the placenta and the maternal/fetal interface, which represent a key stage for human lifelong health. Fit-for-purpose NAMs for the placental-fetal interface are desirable to improve the biological knowledge of environmental exposure at the molecular level and to reduce the high cost, time and ethical impact of animal studies. This article reviews the state of the art on the available in vitro (placental, fetal and amniotic cell-based systems) and in silico NAMs of human relevance for developmental toxicity testing purposes; in addition, we considered available Adverse Outcome Pathways related to developmental toxicity. The OECD TG 414 for the identification and assessment of deleterious effects of prenatal exposure to chemicals on developing organisms will be discussed to delineate the regulatory context and to better debate what is missing and needed in the context of the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease hypothesis to significantly improve this sector. Starting from this analysis, the development of a novel human feto-placental organ-on-chip platform will be introduced as an innovative future alternative tool for developmental toxicity testing, considering possible implementation and validation strategies to overcome the limitation of the current animal studies and NAMs available in regulatory toxicology and in the biomedical field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michaela Luconi
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Biomedical Sciences “Mario Serio”, University of Florence, Viale Pieraccini 6, 50139 Florence, Italy
- I.N.B.B. (Istituto Nazionale Biostrutture e Biosistemi), Viale Medaglie d’Oro 305, 00136 Rome, Italy
| | - Miguel A. Sogorb
- Instituto de Bioingeniería, Universidad Miguel Hernández de Elche, Avenida de la Universidad s/n, 03202 Elche, Spain
| | - Udo R. Markert
- Placenta Lab, Department of Obstetrics, University Hospital Jena, Am Klinikum 1, 07747 Jena, Germany
| | - Emilio Benfenati
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milan, Italy
| | - Tobias May
- InSCREENeX GmbH, Inhoffenstr. 7, 38124 Braunschweig, Germany
| | - Susanne Wolbank
- Ludwig Boltzmann Institut for Traumatology, The Research Center in Cooperation with AUVA, Austrian Cluster for Tissue Regeneration, Donaueschingenstrasse 13, 1200 Vienna, Austria
| | - Alessandra Roncaglioni
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri IRCCS, Via Mario Negri 2, 20156 Milan, Italy
| | - Astrid Schmidt
- Placenta Lab, Department of Obstetrics, University Hospital Jena, Am Klinikum 1, 07747 Jena, Germany
| | - Marco Straccia
- FRESCI by Science&Strategy SL, C/Roure Monjo 33, Vacarisses, 08233 Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sabrina Tait
- Centre for Gender-Specific Medicine, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 00161 Rome, Italy
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El-Masri H, Paul Friedman K, Isaacs K, Wetmore BA. Advances in computational methods along the exposure to toxicological response paradigm. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2022; 450:116141. [PMID: 35777528 PMCID: PMC9619339 DOI: 10.1016/j.taap.2022.116141] [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: 04/12/2022] [Revised: 05/27/2022] [Accepted: 06/23/2022] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Abstract
Human health risk assessment is a function of chemical toxicity, bioavailability to reach target biological tissues, and potential environmental exposure. These factors are complicated by many physiological, biochemical, physical and lifestyle factors. Furthermore, chemical health risk assessment is challenging in view of the large, and continually increasing, number of chemicals found in the environment. These challenges highlight the need to prioritize resources for the efficient and timely assessment of those environmental chemicals that pose greatest health risks. Computational methods, either predictive or investigative, are designed to assist in this prioritization in view of the lack of cost prohibitive in vivo experimental data. Computational methods provide specific and focused toxicity information using in vitro high throughput screening (HTS) assays. Information from the HTS assays can be converted to in vivo estimates of chemical levels in blood or target tissue, which in turn are converted to in vivo dose estimates that can be compared to exposure levels of the screened chemicals. This manuscript provides a review for the landscape of computational methods developed and used at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) highlighting their potentials and challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hisham El-Masri
- Center for Computational Toxicology and Exposure, Office of Research and Development, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA.
| | - Katie Paul Friedman
- Center for Computational Toxicology and Exposure, Office of Research and Development, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
| | - Kristin Isaacs
- Center for Computational Toxicology and Exposure, Office of Research and Development, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
| | - Barbara A Wetmore
- Center for Computational Toxicology and Exposure, Office of Research and Development, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
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Adverse Outcome Pathways in reproductive and developmental toxicology. REPRODUCTIVE AND DEVELOPMENTAL TOXICOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-323-89773-0.00004-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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A cross-platform approach to characterize and screen potential neurovascular unit toxicants. Reprod Toxicol 2020; 96:300-315. [PMID: 32590145 PMCID: PMC9773816 DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2020.06.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2019] [Revised: 05/28/2020] [Accepted: 06/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Development of the neurovascular unit (NVU) is a complex, multistage process that requires orchestrated cell signaling mechanisms across several cell types and ultimately results in formation of the blood-brain barrier. Typical high-throughput screening (HTS) assays investigate single biochemical or single cell responses following chemical insult. As the NVU comprises multiple cell types interacting at various stages of development, a methodology combining high-throughput results across pertinent cell-based assays is needed to investigate potential chemical-induced disruption to the development of this complex cell system. To this end, we implemented a novel method for screening putative NVU disruptors across diverse assay platforms to predict chemical perturbation of the developing NVU. HTS assay results measuring chemical-induced perturbations to cellular key events across angiogenic and neurogenic outcomes in vitro were combined to create a cell-based prioritization of NVU hazard. Chemicals were grouped according to similar modes of action to train a logistic regression literature model on a training set of 38 chemicals. This model utilizes the chemical-specific pairwise mutual information score for PubMed MeSH annotations to represent a quantitative measure of previously published results. Taken together, this study presents a methodology to investigate NVU developmental hazard using cell-based HTS assays and literature evidence to prioritize screening of putative NVU disruptors towards a knowledge-driven characterization of neurovascular developmental toxicity. The results from these screening efforts demonstrate that chemicals representing a range of putative vascular disrupting compound (pVDC) scores can also produce effects on neurogenic outcomes and characterizes possible modes of action for disrupting the developing NVU.
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Abstract
The more than 80,000 chemicals in commerce present a challenge for hazard assessments that toxicity testing in the 21st century strives to address through high-throughput screening (HTS) assays. Assessing chemical effects on human development adds an additional layer of complexity to the screening, with a need to capture complex and dynamic events essential for proper embryo-fetal development. HTS data from ToxCast/Tox21 informs systems toxicology models, which incorporate molecular targets and biological pathways into mechanistic models describing the effects of chemicals on human cells, 3D organotypic culture models, and small model organisms. Adverse Outcome Pathways (AOPs) provide a useful framework for integrating the evidence derived from these in silico and in vitro systems to inform chemical hazard characterization. To illustrate this formulation, we have built an AOP for developmental toxicity through a mode of action linked to embryonic vascular disruption (Aop43). Here, we review the model for quantitative prediction of developmental vascular toxicity from ToxCast HTS data and compare the HTS results to functional vascular development assays in complex cell systems, virtual tissues, and small model organisms. ToxCast HTS predictions from several published and unpublished assays covering different aspects of the angiogenic cycle were generated for a test set of 38 chemicals representing a range of putative vascular disrupting compounds (pVDCs). Results boost confidence in the capacity to predict adverse developmental outcomes from HTS in vitro data and model computational dynamics for in silico reconstruction of developmental systems biology. Finally, we demonstrate the integration of the AOP and developmental systems toxicology to investigate the unique modes of action of two angiogenesis inhibitors.
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Chen X, Fang M, Chernick M, Wang F, Yang J, Yu Y, Zheng N, Teraoka H, Nanba S, Hiraga T, Hinton DE, Dong W. The case for thyroid disruption in early life stage exposures to thiram in zebrafish (Danio rerio). Gen Comp Endocrinol 2019; 271:73-81. [PMID: 30408483 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2018.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2018] [Revised: 09/07/2018] [Accepted: 11/04/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Thiram, a pesticide in the dithiocarbamate chemical family, is widely used to prevent fungal disease in seeds and crops. Its off-site movement to surface waters occurs and may place aquatic organisms at potential harm. Zebrafish embryos were used for investigation of acute (1 h) thiram exposure (0.001-10 µM) at various developmental stages. Survival decreased at 1 µM and 10 µM and hatching was delayed at 0.1 µM and 1 µM. Notochord curvatures were seen at 0.1 and 1 μM thiram when exposure was initiated at 2 and at 10 hpf. Similar notochord curvatures followed exposure to the known TPO inhibitor, methimazole (MMI). Changes were absent in embryos exposed at later stages, i.e., 12 hpf. In embryos exposed to 0.1 or 1 μM at 10 hpf, levels of the thyroid enzyme, Deiodinase 3, increased by 12 hpf. Thyroid peroxide (TPO), important in T4 synthesis, decreased by 48 hpf in embryos exposed to 1 µM at 10 hpf. Thiram toxicity was stage-dependent and early life stage exposure may be responsible for adverse effects seen later. These effects may be due to impacts on the thyroid via regulation of specific thyroid genes including TPO and Deiodinase 3.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xing Chen
- Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Toxicant Monitoring and Toxicology, Collage of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia University for Nationalities, Tongliao, Inner Mongolia 028000, China; Laboratory for Marine Fisheries Science and Food Production Processes, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Key Laboratory of Maricultural Organism Disease Control, Ministry of Agriculture, Qingdao Key Laboratory of Mariculture Epidemiology and Biosecurity, Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; College of Fisheries and Life Science, Shanghai Ocean University, Shanghai 201306, China
| | - Mingliang Fang
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC 27705, USA; School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, 50 Nanyang Avenue, Singapore 639798, Singapore
| | - Melissa Chernick
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC 27705, USA
| | - Feng Wang
- Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Toxicant Monitoring and Toxicology, Collage of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia University for Nationalities, Tongliao, Inner Mongolia 028000, China
| | - Jingfeng Yang
- Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Toxicant Monitoring and Toxicology, Collage of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia University for Nationalities, Tongliao, Inner Mongolia 028000, China
| | - Yongli Yu
- Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Toxicant Monitoring and Toxicology, Collage of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia University for Nationalities, Tongliao, Inner Mongolia 028000, China
| | - Na Zheng
- Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecology and Environment, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agricultural Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun, Jilin 130012, China
| | - Hiroki Teraoka
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu 069-8501, Japan
| | - Satomi Nanba
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu 069-8501, Japan
| | - Takeo Hiraga
- School of Veterinary Medicine, Rakuno Gakuen University, Ebetsu 069-8501, Japan
| | - David E Hinton
- Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC 27705, USA.
| | - Wu Dong
- Inner Mongolia Key Laboratory of Toxicant Monitoring and Toxicology, Collage of Animal Science and Technology, Inner Mongolia University for Nationalities, Tongliao, Inner Mongolia 028000, China; Nicholas School of the Environment, Duke University, Durham, NC 27705, USA.
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Stapleton PA, Wingard CJ, Nurkiewicz TR, Holloway AC, Zelikoff JT, Knudsen TB, Rogers LK. Cardiopulmonary consequences of gestational toxicant exposure: Symposium overview at the 56th annual SOT meeting, Baltimore, MD. Reprod Toxicol 2018; 79:16-20. [PMID: 29709519 DOI: 10.1016/j.reprotox.2018.04.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2018] [Revised: 04/09/2018] [Accepted: 04/24/2018] [Indexed: 01/17/2023]
Abstract
Xenobiotic exposures affect the maternal and/or in utero environment resulting in impairments in fetal development. During the period of rapid fetal growth, developing cardiovascular systems are especially vulnerable to their environment. Furthermore, fetal exposures can evoke changes in epigenetic signatures that result in permanent modifications in gene expression. This symposium focused on the intersection between maternal and fetal exposure and the developing cardiovascular system. The impact of maternal exposures on prenatal development is of major concern for regulatory agencies given the unique vulnerability of the embryo/fetus to environmental factors, the importance of vascular biology to maternal-fetal interactions, and the adverse consequences of vascular disruption to children's health. Speakers provided data from diverse exposures: nanomaterials, particulate matter or air pollution (PM2.5), nicotine, and environmental chemicals. The current findings related to susceptible gestational windows for cardiovascular development and epigenetic, transcriptomic, toxicokinetic, and toxicodynamic changes in vascular physiology and cardiac function. In response to these concerns, new concepts in predictive modeling and risk assessment associated with in utero exposures were presented as future avenues of research within developmental toxicology. Finally, current applications using an Adverse Outcome Pathway framework for developmental toxicity were presented to integrate data from in vitro profiling of chemical libraries (e.g. ToxCast™) with computational models for in silico toxicology. In summary, this symposium addressed the significant threats to cardiovascular health that are associated with fetal/perinatal exposures, and offered new insights into the predictive, mechanistic, and risk assessment strategies in developmental toxicology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phoebe A Stapleton
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Ernest Mario School of Pharmacy, Rutgers University, Piscataway, NJ, USA.
| | - Christopher J Wingard
- College of Health Professions, School of Movement and Rehabilitation Sciences, Bellarmine University, Louisville, KY, USA
| | - Timothy R Nurkiewicz
- Department of Physiology, Pharmacology, and Neuroscience, Toxicology Working Group, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA
| | - Alison C Holloway
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Judith T Zelikoff
- New York University School of Medicine, Dept. of Environmental Medicine, 57 Old Forge Road, Tuxedo, NY, USA
| | - Thomas B Knudsen
- National Center for Computational Toxicology, US Environmental Protection Agency, Research Triangle Park, NC, USA
| | - Lynette K Rogers
- Center for Perinatal Research, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA.
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Smirnova L, Kleinstreuer N, Corvi R, Levchenko A, Fitzpatrick SC, Hartung T. 3S - Systematic, systemic, and systems biology and toxicology. ALTEX 2018; 35:139-162. [PMID: 29677694 PMCID: PMC6696989 DOI: 10.14573/altex.1804051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2018] [Accepted: 04/06/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
A biological system is more than the sum of its parts - it accomplishes many functions via synergy. Deconstructing the system down to the molecular mechanism level necessitates the complement of reconstructing functions on all levels, i.e., in our conceptualization of biology and its perturbations, our experimental models and computer modelling. Toxicology contains the somewhat arbitrary subclass "systemic toxicities"; however, there is no relevant toxic insult or general disease that is not systemic. At least inflammation and repair are involved that require coordinated signaling mechanisms across the organism. However, the more body components involved, the greater the challenge to reca-pitulate such toxicities using non-animal models. Here, the shortcomings of current systemic testing and the development of alternative approaches are summarized. We argue that we need a systematic approach to integrating existing knowledge as exemplified by systematic reviews and other evidence-based approaches. Such knowledge can guide us in modelling these systems using bioengineering and virtual computer models, i.e., via systems biology or systems toxicology approaches. Experimental multi-organ-on-chip and microphysiological systems (MPS) provide a more physiological view of the organism, facilitating more comprehensive coverage of systemic toxicities, i.e., the perturbation on organism level, without using substitute organisms (animals). The next challenge is to establish disease models, i.e., micropathophysiological systems (MPPS), to expand their utility to encompass biomedicine. Combining computational and experimental systems approaches and the chal-lenges of validating them are discussed. The suggested 3S approach promises to leverage 21st century technology and systematic thinking to achieve a paradigm change in studying systemic effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lena Smirnova
- Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT), Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Raffaella Corvi
- European Commission, Joint Research Centre (JRC), EU Reference Laboratory for Alternatives to Animal Testing (EURL ECVAM), Ispra, (VA), Italy
| | - Andre Levchenko
- Yale Systems Biology Institute and Biomedical Engineering Department, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Suzanne C Fitzpatrick
- Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, College Park, MD, USA
| | - Thomas Hartung
- Johns Hopkins University, Bloomberg School of Public Health, Center for Alternatives to Animal Testing (CAAT), Baltimore, MD, USA.
- CAAT-Europe, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
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