Adrenocorticotropin (ACTH) and corticosterone secretion by perifused pituitary and adrenal glands from rodents exposed to 2,3,7, 8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD)

The association between dioxins and steroid hormones in general adult males: a cross-sectional study in an e-waste region of China

As observed among residents in electronic waste (e-waste) recycling areas, dioxins can disrupt the homeostasis of endocrine hormones and the balance of thyroid hormones. Few studies, however, have examined whether e-waste recycling activities influence steroid hormone equilibrium in the general adult male population. This study evaluated the association between steroid hormones and the physical burdens of dioxins in the general adult male population residing in an e-waste region. In September 2017, 74 adult males residing in an e-waste dismantling region were enrolled in the current study. Approximately 10 mL of blood was collected from each adult male, and the serum samples were separated through centrifugation. Then, the levels of dioxin and steroid hormones in the serum of the participants were measured. We treated dioxin levels as categorical variables in the general linear model according to quartiles (25, 50, and 75 percentile). Comparing the findings with a reference group (< 25th percentile), we noted significantly higher dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) level in men with low serum polychlorinated dibenzofuran-toxic equivalent (PCDFs-TEQ) level between 3.80 and 6.31 pg/g lipid (1933 vs. 1447 pg/ml) and low polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans-TEQ (PCDD/PCDFs-TEQ) between 8.57 and 15.11 pg/g lipid (1996 vs. 1360 pg/ml). Moreover, a significantly higher androstenedione (A-dione) level was found in men whose serum PCDFs-TEQ ≥ 11.34 pg/g lipd (2404 vs. 1848). What's more, there were significantly higher 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3β-HSD) concentrations in low- and high-2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) groups (1.30-1.67 and ≥ 2.64 pg-TEQ/g lipid, respectively with 719 and 807 vs. 496, respectively). Our findings suggest that specific dioxin exposure may disturb normal DHEA, A-dione levels, and enzyme activity in the general adult male population in an e-waste region of China.

Environmental insults in early life and submissiveness later in life in mouse models

Dominant and subordinate dispositions are not only determined genetically but also nurtured by environmental stimuli during neuroendocrine development. However, the relationship between early life environment and dominance behavior remains elusive. Using the IntelliCage-based competition task for group-housed mice, we have previously described two cases in which environmental insults during the developmental period altered the outcome of dominance behavior later in life. First, mice that were repeatedly isolated from their mother and their littermates (early deprivation; ED), and second, mice perinatally exposed to an environmental pollutant, dioxin, both exhibited subordinate phenotypes, defined by decreased occupancy of limited resource sites under highly competitive circumstances. Similar alterations found in the cortex and limbic area of these two models are suggestive of the presence of neural systems shared across generalized dominance behavior.

Familial isolated pituitary adenomas (FIPA) and the pituitary adenoma predisposition due to mutations in the aryl hydrocarbon receptor interacting protein (AIP) gene

Pituitary adenomas are one of the most frequent intracranial tumors and occur with a prevalence of approximately 1:1000 in the developed world. Pituitary adenomas have a serious disease burden, and their management involves neurosurgery, biological therapies, and radiotherapy. Early diagnosis of pituitary tumors while they are smaller may help increase cure rates. Few genetic predictors of pituitary adenoma development exist. Recent years have seen two separate, complimentary advances in inherited pituitary tumor research. The clinical condition of familial isolated pituitary adenomas (FIPA) has been described, which encompasses the familial occurrence of isolated pituitary adenomas outside of the setting of syndromic conditions like multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 and Carney complex. FIPA families comprise approximately 2% of pituitary adenomas and represent a clinical entity with homogeneous or heterogeneous pituitary adenoma types occurring within the same kindred. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor interacting protein (AIP) gene has been identified as causing a pituitary adenoma predisposition of variable penetrance that accounts for 20% of FIPA families. Germline AIP mutations have been shown to associate with the occurrence of large pituitary adenomas that occur at a young age, predominantly in children/adolescents and young adults. AIP mutations are usually associated with somatotropinomas, but prolactinomas, nonfunctioning pituitary adenomas, Cushing disease, and other infrequent clinical adenoma types can also occur. Gigantism is a particular feature of AIP mutations and occurs in more than one third of affected somatotropinoma patients. Study of pituitary adenoma patients with AIP mutations has demonstrated that these cases raise clinical challenges to successful treatment. Extensive research on the biology of AIP and new advances in mouse Aip knockout models demonstrate multiple pathways by which AIP may contribute to tumorigenesis. This review assesses the current clinical and therapeutic characteristics of more than 200 FIPA families and addresses research findings among AIP mutation-bearing patients in different populations with pituitary adenomas.

Short-Term Hormone Release from Adult Female Rat Hypothalamic and Pituitary Explants is not Altered by 2,3,7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin

2, 3, 7,8-Tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) has adverse effects on reproduction, in part due to direct actions at the ovary. It is unclear whether effects are further mediated by glands that regulate ovarian function. We investigated whether effects of TCDD are mediated via the hypothalamic-pituitary axis. Hypothalamic and pituitary tissues were cultured in medium with and without TCDD. TCDD did not alter GnRH release from hypothalamic samples. It continued to be pulsatile with no differences in the average peak frequency, average peak amplitude, or baseline GnRH release. TCDD did not alter GnRH-induced release of gonadotropins from pituitary samples. There were no differences in average peak amplitude or baseline release. AhR, ARNT or ER alpha mRNA copy numbers in cultured pituitaries were not affected by TCDD. Our data suggest that TCDD effects on ovarian function are not mediated through the hypothalamic or pituitary release parameters tested in this study.

Endocrine disruption induced by organochlorines (OCs): field studies and experimental models

Long-range transport of persistent organic compounds by air and ocean currents from industrialized areas resulted in high levels of these pollutants in food webs in the Svalbard area. With the aim to test if organochlorine (OC) exposure in free-living polar bears from Svalbard affected their plasma steroid hormone concentrations, it was found that polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were associated with increased progesterone levels in females. The sum of pesticides (sigma pesticides) and sigma PCBs contributed significantly negative to the variation of the plasma testosterone in males, and the overall contribution of the OCs to the plasma cortisol variation was negative. A second objective was to study the effects of selected OCs (i.e., PCB 153 and PCB 126) on animal health as a consequence of effects on endocrine-regulated functions such as reproduction and immunity in a goat model focusing on long-term and low-level exposure during the periods of fetal development and in the neonatal period. Additionally, acute exposure was studied in adult mice. The results indicated that exposure to low doses of PCB 153 in utero and in the suckling period influenced reproductive functions and both PCB 153 and PCB 126 exerted immunomodulatory effects on the offspring, whereas acute exposure of adult mice had minor effects on male reproductive function.

Subchronic exposure to TCDD, PeCDF, PCB126, and PCB153: effect on hepatic gene expression

We employed DNA microarray to identify unique hepatic gene expression patterns associated with subchronic exposure to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and other halogenated aromatic hydrocarbons (HAHs). Female Harlan Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed for 13 weeks to toxicologically equivalent doses of four different HAHs based on the toxic equivalency factor of each chemical: TCDD (100 ng/kg/day), 2,3,4,7,8-pentachlorodibenzofuran (PeCDF; 200 ng/kg/day), 3,3',4,4',5-pentachlorobiphenyl (PCB126; 1,000 ng/kg/day), or 2,2',4,4',5,5'-hexachlorobiphenyl (PCB153; 1,000 microg/kg/day). Global gene expression profiles for each exposure, which account for 8,799 gene probe sets contained on Affymetrix RGU34A GeneChips, were compared by principal components analysis. The aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) ligands TCDD, PeCDF, and PCB126 produced very similar global gene expression profiles that were unique from the nonAhR ligand PCB153, underscoring the extensive impact of AhR activation and/or the resulting hepatic injury on global gene expression in female rat liver. Many genes were co-expressed during the 13-week TCDD, PeCDF, or PCB126 exposures, including classical AhR-regulated genes and some genes not previously characterized as being AhR regulated, such as carcinoembryonic-cell adhesion molecule 4 (C-CAM4) and adenylate cyclase-associated protein 2 (CAP2). Real-time reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction confirmed the increased expression of these genes in TCDD-, PeCDF-, and PCB126-exposed rats as well as the up- or down-regulation of several other novel dioxin-responsive genes. In summary, DNA microarray successfully identified dioxin-responsive genes expressed after exposure to AhR ligands (TCDD, PeCDF, PCB126) but not after exposure to the non-AhR ligand PCB153. Together, these findings may help to elucidate some of the fundamental features of dioxin toxicity and may further clarify the biologic role of the AhR signaling pathway.

Constitutive and TCDD-induced expression of Ah receptor-responsive genes in the pituitary

The 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and related substances cause a wide variety of pathological alterations, with the most severe being progressive anorexia and body weight loss. These features suggest a possible involvement of the nervous system and endocrine organs, including the pituitary gland. TCDD-related toxicity is considered mainly to be mediated by the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AHR) protein, which binds TCDD, and heterodimerizes with its partner protein, the aryl hydrocarbon receptor nuclear translocator (ARNT), and binds to xenobiotica responsive elements (XREs) in the promoter regions of biotransformation genes as well as genes involved in growth, differentiation and cellular homeostasis. In the present study, we have investigated the expression of AHR responsive genes in the pituitary of untreated and TCDD treated 129/SV/C57BL/6 mice in vivo and in pituitary cells in vitro. After TCDD or beta-naphthoflavone (beta NF) treatment, the relative levels of cytochrome P4501A1 (CYP1A1) mRNA and protein were dramatically increased in pituitary cells. The AHR repressor (AHRR) mRNA level was induced 7-13-fold by TCDD and beta NF. Furthermore, the expression of the adrenocorticotrophic hormone (ACTH) precursor, the proopiomelanocortin (POMC) gene, was investigated. A three-fold increase in POMC mRNA was observed in the pituitary of TCDD treated mice. POMC mRNA level was also increased in the pituitary cell line AtT-20 after TCDD treatment. The proteins encoded by POMC translational products, ACTH and beta-endorphin, were found with immunocytochemistry staining to be increased in AtT-20 cells after TCDD exposure. The presence of several XRE sequences in the promoter region and in the first intron of the human POMC gene suggest that the up-regulation of POMC expression in the pituitary may play a role in the endocrine alterations induced by TCDD. All together, the results point to the pituitary gland being a direct target for TCDD.