title: Comparison of in vitro cytotoxicity, estrogenicity and anti-estrogenicity of triclosan, perfluorooctane sulfonate and perfluorooctanoic acid.
abstract: Concern with increasing levels of emerging contaminants exists on a global scale. Three commonly observed emerging environmental contaminants: triclosan (2,4,4-trichloro-2'-hydroxydiphenyl ether), a synthetic, broad-spectrum antibacterial agent, and perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), used in stain- and water-resistant treatments, have become distributed ubiquitously across ecosystems and have been detected in wildlife and humans. MCF-7 BOS human breast cancer cells were used to investigate the potential for cytotoxicity, estrogenicity and anti-estrogenicity of these three compounds at environmentally relevant concentrations using the 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium, inner salt assay (MTS) and the E-SCREEN bioassay. The doses used were 0.002-200 µg ml(-1) for triclosan and 0.03-30 µg ml(-1) for PFOS and PFOA. Quantitative results from the MTS assay revealed no significant cytotoxicity at lower concentrations for any of the test compounds; however, both triclosan and PFOA were cytotoxic at the highest concentrations examined (100-200 and 30 µg ml(-1), respectively), while PFOS showed no significant cytotoxicity at any of the concentrations tested. Positive estrogenic responses (P < 0.05) were elicited from the E-SCREEN at all concentrations examined for triclosan and PFOA and at 30 µg ml(-1) for PFOS. Further, significant anti-estrogenic activity (P < 0.05) was detected for all compounds tested at all concentrations when cells were co-exposed with 10(-9) m 17-β estradiol (E(2)). The overall results demonstrated that triclosan, PFOS and PFOA have estrogenic activities and that co-exposure to contaminants and E(2) produced anti-estrogenic effects. Each of these compounds could provide a source of xenoestrogens to humans and wildlife in the environment. Published 2011. This article is a US Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.
authors.affiliation: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Ocean Service Center for Coastal Environmental Health and Biomolecular Research, 219 Fort Johnson Road, Charleston, SC 29412–9110, USA. natasha.henry@noaa.gov
authors.forename: Natasha D
authors.initials: ND
authors.lastname: Henry
authors.forename: Patricia A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Fair
mesh_terms: D017738:Alkanesulfonic Acids / Q000633:toxicity*; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology; D002210:Caprylates / Q000633:toxicity*; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D004965:Estrogen Antagonists / Q000633:toxicity*; D004968:Estrogens, Non-Steroidal / Q000633:toxicity*; D005260:Female; D005466:Fluorocarbons / Q000633:toxicity*; D006801:Humans; D013778:Tetrazolium Salts / Q000378:metabolism; D013844:Thiazoles / Q000378:metabolism; D014260:Triclosan / Q000633:toxicity*
chemical_list: D017738:Alkanesulfonic Acids; D002210:Caprylates; D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D004965:Estrogen Antagonists; D004968:Estrogens, Non-Steroidal; D005466:Fluorocarbons; D013778:Tetrazolium Salts; D013844:Thiazoles; C070380:3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-5-(3-carboxymethoxyphenyl)-2-(4-sulfophenyl)-2H-tetrazolium; D014260:Triclosan; C023036:perfluorooctanoic acid; C076994:perfluorooctane sulfonic acid