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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Endocrinol.
Sec. Developmental Endocrinology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fendo.2024.1481014
This article is part of the Research Topic Maternal-Fetal interface: new insight in placenta research Volume II View all 7 articles

Polystyrene microplastics exposition on human placental explants induces time-dependent cytotoxicity, oxidative stress and metabolic alterations

Provisionally accepted
Ashelley Kettilem A. Sousa Ashelley Kettilem A. Sousa 1Keyla Pires Keyla Pires 1Isadora H. Cavalcante Isadora H. Cavalcante 1Iasmin Cristina L. Cavalcante Iasmin Cristina L. Cavalcante 1Julia D. Santos Julia D. Santos 1Maiara Ingrid C. Queiroz Maiara Ingrid C. Queiroz 1Ana Catarina R. Leite Ana Catarina R. Leite 1Alessandre C. Crispim Alessandre C. Crispim 1Edmilson R. da Rocha Junior Edmilson R. da Rocha Junior 1Thiago M. Aquino Thiago M. Aquino 1Rodrigo Barbano Weingrill Rodrigo Barbano Weingrill 2Johann Urschitz Johann Urschitz 2Stephanie Ospina-Prieto Stephanie Ospina-Prieto 1Alexandre U. Borbely Alexandre U. Borbely 1*
  • 1 Federal University of Alagoas, Maceió, Brazil
  • 2 University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Microplastics (MP) are environmental pollutants with the potential to harm living organisms. MPs have been shown to accumulate in human organs, including the placenta. Here, we investigated the biochemical impact of 5 μm polystyrene microplastics (PS-MP) on term placental chorionic villi explants, focusing on cytotoxicity, oxidative stress, metabolic changes, and the potential of MP to cross the placental barrier. Placental explants were exposed to 100 μg/mL of PS-MP for 72 hours. A significant increase in cytotoxicity over time (p < 0.01) could be observed by lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) release assay. Mitochondrial and overall superoxide anion (p < 0.01 and p < 0.05, respectively) and hydrogen peroxide (p < 0.001) were substantially increased. PS-MP exposure led to a reduction in total sulfhydryl (SH) content (p < 0.05) and the activities of antioxidant enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD, p < 0.01) and catalase (CAT, p < 0.05), whereas glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activity increased (p < 0.05) and the oxidized/reduced glutathione ratio was diminished (p < 0.05). Markers of oxidative damage, such as malondialdehyde and carbonylated proteins, also increased significantly (p < 0.001 and p < 0.01, respectively), indicating altogether oxidative stress. A metabolomics analysis revealed significant differences between control and PS-MP exposed groups, with reduced levels of alanine, formate, glutaric acid, and maltotriose. In conclusion, the study demonstrates that a high concentration of PS-MP induces time-dependent cytotoxicity, oxidative stress, and changes in the TCA cycle, and in the folate, amino acid and energetic metabolisms. As such, it is paramount to expand our research efforts to elucidate the comprehensive effects of MP contamination on pregnancy, and the repercussions on the subsequent generations.

    Keywords: metabolomics1, microplastics2, Oxidative Stress3, Placenta4, Polystyrene5

    Received: 15 Aug 2024; Accepted: 31 Oct 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Sousa, Pires, Cavalcante, Cavalcante, Santos, Queiroz, Leite, Crispim, da Rocha Junior, Aquino, Barbano Weingrill, Urschitz, Ospina-Prieto and Borbely. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence: Alexandre U. Borbely, Federal University of Alagoas, Maceió, Brazil

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