Arsenic exposure perturbs epithelial-mesenchymal cell transition and gene expression in a collagen gel assay.

ABSTRACT: Arsenic is a naturally occurring metalloid and environmental contaminant. Arsenic exposure in drinking water is reported to cause cancer of the liver, kidneys, lung, bladder, and skin as well as birth defects, including neural tube, facial, and vasculogenic defects. The early embryonic period most sensitive to arsenic includes a variety of cellular processes. One key cellular process is epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) where epithelial sheets develop into three-dimensional structures. An embryonic prototype of EMT is found in the atrioventricular (AV) canal of the developing heart, where endothelia differentiate to form heart valves. Effects of arsenic on this cellular process were examined by collagen gel invasion assay (EMT assay) using explanted AV canals from chicken embryo hear

SUBMITTER: Lencinas A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2886855 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature