title: From the Cover: Exposing Imidacloprid Interferes With Neurogenesis Through Impacting on Chick Neural Tube Cell Survival.
abstract: As a neonicotinoid pesticide, imidacloprid is widely used to control insects in agriculture and fleas on domestic animals. However, it is not known whether imidacloprid exposure negatively affects neurogenesis during embryonic development. In this study, using a chick embryo model, we investigated the effects of imidacloprid exposure on neurogenesis at the earliest stage and during late-stage embryo development. Exposing HH0 chick embryos to imidacloprid in EC culture caused neural tube defects (NTDs) and neuronal differentiation dysplasia as determined by NF/Tuj1 labeling. Furthermore, we found that F-actin accumulation on the apical side of the neural tube was suppressed by exposure to imidacloprid, and the expression of BMP4 and Shh on the dorsal and ventral sides of the neural tubes, respectively, were also reduced, which in turn affects the dorsolateral hinge points during bending of the neural plate. In addition, exposure to imidacloprid reduced cell proliferation and increased cell apoptosis, as determined by pHIS3 labeling and TUNEL staining, respectively, also contributing to the malformation. We obtained similar results in late-stage embryos exposed to imidacloprid. Finally, a bioinformatics analysis was employed to determine which genes identified in this study were involved in NTDs. The experimental evidence and bioinformatics analysis suggested that imidacloprid exposure during chick embryo development could increase the risk of NTDs and neural dysplasia.
authors.affiliation: *Division of Histology and Embryology, Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine of the Ministry of Education.
authors.forename: Meng
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: *Division of Histology and Embryology, Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine of the Ministry of Education.
authors.forename: Guang
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: *Division of Histology and Embryology, Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine of the Ministry of Education.
authors.forename: Shi-Yao
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: *Division of Histology and Embryology, Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine of the Ministry of Education.
authors.forename: Shan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.affiliation: Division of Medical Information, Medical College, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China.
authors.forename: Guo-Long
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.affiliation: *Division of Histology and Embryology, Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine of the Ministry of Education.
authors.forename: Chao-Jie
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Division of Cell and Developmental Biology, University of Dundee, Dundee DD1 5EH, UK.
authors.forename: Manli
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chuai
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine of the Ministry of Education, School of Biomedical Sciences, Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong.
authors.forename: Kenneth Ka Ho
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Division of Pathophysiology, Medical College, Jinan University, Guangzhou 510632, China yang_xuesong@126.com.
authors.forename: Da-Xiang
authors.initials: DX
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: *Division of Histology and Embryology, Key Laboratory for Regenerative Medicine of the Ministry of Education yang_xuesong@126.com.
authors.forename: Xuesong
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Yang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D015153:Blotting, Western; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D002470:Cell Survival / Q000187:drug effects*; D002642:Chick Embryo; D054262:Gastrulation / Q000187:drug effects; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D020287:In Situ Nick-End Labeling; D007306:Insecticides / Q000633:toxicity*; D000073943:Neonicotinoids / Q000633:toxicity*; D054259:Neural Tube / Q000166:cytology / Q000187:drug effects*; D009436:Neural Tube Defects / Q000139:chemically induced; D055495:Neurogenesis / Q000187:drug effects*; D009574:Nitro Compounds / Q000633:toxicity*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D007306:Insecticides; D000073943:Neonicotinoids; D009574:Nitro Compounds; C082359:imidacloprid
keywords: BMP4/Shh; cell proliferation/apoptosis; imidacloprid; neural tube defect; neuronal differentiation