Project description:Sea spray aerosols (SSAs) have profound effects on our climate and ecosystems. They also contain microbiota and biogenic molecules which could affect human health. Yet the exposure and effects of SSAs on human health remain poorly studied. Here, we exposed human lung cancer cells to extracts of a natural sea spray aerosol collected at the seashore in Belgium, a laboratory-generated SSA, the marine algal toxin homoyessotoxin and a chemical inhibitor of the mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway. We observed significant increased expression of genes related to the mTOR pathway and Proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) after exposure to homoyessotoxin and the laboratory-generated SSA. In contrast, we observed a significant decrease in gene expression in the mTOR pathway and of PCSK9 after exposure to the natural SSA and the mTOR inhibitor, suggesting induction of apoptosis. Our results indicate that marine biogenics in SSAs interact with PCSK9 and the mTOR pathway and can be used in new potential pharmaceutical applications. Overall, our results provide a substantial molecular evidence base for potential beneficial health effects at environmentally relevant concentrations of natural SSAs.
Project description:The neurotoxic amino acid, domoic acid, is naturally produced by marine phytoplankton and presents a significant health threat to marine mammal and human populations. Currently, diagnostic tools to assess exposure are not available, yet concerns regarding health impacts associated with low-level repetitive exposure are growing. Here we applied a laboratory zebrafish model to assess exposure to asymptomatic doses of domoic acid in a nine-month low-level repetitive exposure study. Blood analyses, whole brain gene expression, and functional lymphocyte proliferation assays analyzed at 11 time points revealed a quantifiable antibody response that was temporally correlated with upregulated immune response genes and significantly increased spontaneous lymphocyte proliferation. The antibody response was further validated in field exposed California sea lions and provides the first biomarker for chronic exposure assessment.
Project description:The neurotoxic amino acid, domoic acid, is naturally produced by marine phytoplankton and presents a significant health threat to marine mammal and human populations. Currently, diagnostic tools to assess exposure are not available, yet concerns regarding health impacts associated with low-level repetitive exposure are growing. Here we applied a laboratory zebrafish model to assess exposure to asymptomatic doses of domoic acid in a nine-month low-level repetitive exposure study. Blood analyses, whole brain gene expression, and functional lymphocyte proliferation assays analyzed at 11 time points revealed a quantifiable antibody response that was temporally correlated with upregulated immune response genes and significantly increased spontaneous lymphocyte proliferation. The antibody response was further validated in field exposed California sea lions and provides the first biomarker for chronic exposure assessment. Time series domoic acid exposure of zebrafish.