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Persistence of furan-induced epigenetic aberrations in the livers of Fisher 344 rats

ABSTRACT: Furan is a heterocyclic organic compound produced in the chemical manufacturing industry and also found in a broad range of food products, including infant formulas and baby foods. Previous reports have indicated that the adverse biological effects of furan, including its liver tumorigenicity, may be associated with epigenetic abnormalities. In the present study we investigated the persistence of epigenetic alterations in rat liver. Male Fisher 344 (F344) rats were treated by gavage 5 days per week with 8 mg furan/kg body weight (bw)/day for 90 days. After the last treatment, rats were divided randomly into four groups; one group of rats was sacrificed 24 hours after the last treatment, while other groups were maintained without further furan treatment for an additional 90, 180, or 360 days. Treatment with furan for 90 days resulted in alterations in histone lysine methylation and acetylation, oxidative damage to DNA, and changes in the gene expression in the livers. A majority of these furan-induced molecular changes was transient and disappeared after the cessation of furan treatment. In contrast, histone H3 lysine 9, H3 lysine 27, and H3 lysine 56 showed a sustained and time-depended decrease in acetylation, which was associated with formation of heterochromatin and altered gene expression. These results indicate that furan-induced adverse effects may be mechanistically related to sustained changes in histone lysine acetylation that compromise the ability of cells to maintain and control properly the expression of genetic information.

ORGANISM(S): Rattus norvegicus

PROVIDER: GSE63740 | GEO | 2014/12/02

SECONDARY ACCESSION(S): PRJNA268953

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:Furan is a widely used industrial chemical and a common contaminant in heated foods. Chronic furan exposure has been shown to cause cholangiocarcinoma and hepatocellular tumors at doses of 2 mg/kg bw/day with gender differences in frequency and severity. The hepatic transcriptional alterations induced by low doses of furan (doses below those inducing liver tumors) and the potential mechanisms underlying gender differences are largely unexplored. We used DNA microarrays to examine the global hepatic mRNA and microRNA transcriptional profiles of male and female rats exposed to 0, 0.03, 0.12, 0.5 or 2 mg/kg bw/day furan over 90 days. Marked gender differences in gene expression responses to furan were observed, with many more altered genes in exposed males than females, confirming the increased sensitivity of males even at the low doses. Pathway analysis supported that key events in furan-induced hepatotoxicity in males included gene expression changes related to oxidative stress, apoptosis and inflammatory response, while pathway changes in females were consistent with primarily adaptive responses (regeneration). Pathway benchmark doses (BMDs) were estimated and compared to relevant apical endpoints. Transcriptional BMDs could be examined in males, they ranged from 0.08 M-bM-^@M-^S 1.43 mg/kg bw/day and approximated those derived from traditional histopathology. MiR-34a (a target of P53 signalling) was the only microRNA significantly increased at the 2 mg/kg bw/day, providing evidence in support of the importance of apoptosis and cell proliferation in furan hepatotoxicity. Overall, this study demonstrates the use of transcriptional profiling to discern mode of action and mechanisms involved in gender differences. A total of 50 RNA samples (5 female and 5 male rats per dose group, 5 dose groups total) were labelled with Cyanine 5-CTP using Low Input Quick Amp Labelling kits (Agilent Technologies Inc.) following the manufacturerM-bM-^@M-^Ys instruction. Universal rat reference total RNA (Agilent Technologies Inc.) was labelled with Cyanine 3-CTP. Cy5-sample cRNA and Cy3-reference cRNA were hybridized to Agilent G4853A SurePrint G3 Rat GE 8 X 60K microarrays (Agilent Technologies Inc.). One microarray from the male group did not pass the quality control and was eliminated from further analyses

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Persistence of furan-induced epigenetic aberrations in the livers of Fisher 344 rats

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