NMR-based metabonomic analysis of the hepatotoxicity induced by combined exposure to PCBs and TCDD in rats.
A metabonomic approach using (1)H NMR spectroscopy was adopted to investigate the metabonomic pattern of rat urine after oral administration of environmental endocrine disruptors (EDs) polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo- p-dioxin (TCDD) alone or in combination and to explore the possible hepatotoxic mechanisms of combined exposure to PCBs and TCDD. (1)H NMR spectra of urines collected 24h before and after exposure were analyzed via pattern recognition by using principal component analysis (PCA). Serum biochemistry and liver histopathology indicated significant hepatotoxicity in the rats of the combined group. The PCA scores plots of urinary (1)H NMR data showed that all the treatment groups could be easily distinguished from the control group, so could the PCBs or TCDD group and the combined group. The loadings plots of the PCA revealed remarkable increases in the levels of lactate, glucose, taurine, creatine, and 2-hydroxy-isovaleric acid and reductions in the levels of 2-oxoglutarate, citrate, succinate, hippurate, and trimethylamine-N-oxide in rat urine after exposure. These changes were more striking in the combined group. The changed metabolites may be considered possible biomarker for the hepatotoxicity. The present study demonstrates that combined exposure to PCBs and TCDD induced significant hepatotoxicity in rats, and mitochondrial dysfunction and fatty acid metabolism perturbations might contribute to the hepatotoxicity. There was good conformity between changes in the urine metabonomic pattern and those in serum biochemistry and liver histopathology. These results showed that the NMR-based metabonomic approach may provide a promising technique for the evaluation of the combined toxicity of EDs.
Lu
Chunfeng
C
Evaluation and Research Center for Toxicology, Institute of Disease Control and Prevention, Academy of Military Medical Sciences, 20 Dongdajie Street, Fengtai District, Beijing 100071, PR China.
Wang
Yimei
Y
Sheng
Zhiguo
Z
Liu
Gang
G
Fu
Ze
Z
Zhao
Jing
J
Zhao
Jun
J
Yan
Xianzhong
X
Zhu
Benzhan
B
Peng
Shuangqing
S
D000818:Animals; D056486:Chemical and Drug Induced Liver Injury / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D004338:Drug Combinations; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000633:toxicity; D009682:Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D055432:Metabolomics / Q000379:methods*; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000633:toxicity*; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000633:toxicity*; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley
D004338:Drug Combinations; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D000072317:Polychlorinated Dibenzodioxins; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls