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Pontecorvi P, Ceccarelli S, Cece F, Camero S, Lotti LV, Niccolai E, Nannini G, Gerini G, Anastasiadou E, Scialis ES, Romano E, Venneri MA, Amedei A, Angeloni A, Megiorni F, Marchese C. Assessing the Impact of Polyethylene Nano/Microplastic Exposure on Human Vaginal Keratinocytes. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:11379. [PMID: 37511139 PMCID: PMC10380279 DOI: 10.3390/ijms241411379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2023] [Revised: 06/24/2023] [Accepted: 07/11/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
The global rise of single-use throw-away plastic products has elicited a massive increase in the nano/microplastics (N/MPLs) exposure burden in humans. Recently, it has been demonstrated that disposable period products may release N/MPLs with usage, which represents a potential threat to women's health which has not been scientifically addressed yet. By using polyethyl ene (PE) particles (200 nm to 9 μm), we showed that acute exposure to a high concentration of N/MPLs induced cell toxicity in vaginal keratinocytes after effective cellular uptake, as viability and apoptosis data suggest, along with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations. The internalised N/MPLs altered the expression of junctional and adherence proteins and the organisation of the actin cortex, influencing the level of genes involved in oxidative stress signalling pathways and that of miRNAs related to epithelial barrier function. When the exposure to PE N/MPLs was discontinued or became chronic, cells were able to recover from the negative effects on viability and differentiation/proliferation gene expression in a few days. However, in all cases, PE N/MPL exposure prompted a sustained alteration of DNA methyltransferase and DNA demethylase expression, which might impact epigenetic regulation processes, leading to accelerated cell ageing and inflammation, or the occurrence of malignant transformation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paola Pontecorvi
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Simona Ceccarelli
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Fabrizio Cece
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Simona Camero
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Lavinia Vittoria Lotti
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Elena Niccolai
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla 3, 50134 Florence, Italy
| | - Giulia Nannini
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla 3, 50134 Florence, Italy
| | - Giulia Gerini
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Eleni Anastasiadou
- Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Via di Grottarossa 1035, 00189 Rome, Italy
| | - Elena Sofia Scialis
- Department of Innovative Technologies in Medicine and Dentistry, University "G. D'Annunzio" Chieti-Pescara, Via dei Vestini 31, 66100 Chieti, Italy
| | - Enrico Romano
- Department of Sense Organs, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale del Policlinico 155, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Mary Anna Venneri
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Amedeo Amedei
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Medicine, University of Florence, Largo Brambilla 3, 50134 Florence, Italy
| | - Antonio Angeloni
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Francesca Megiorni
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
| | - Cinzia Marchese
- Department of Experimental Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Viale Regina Elena 324, 00161 Rome, Italy
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