Abstract
Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous environmental contaminants; through their physicochemical properties, they can have potentially negative effects on the environment as well as on animal and human health. Studies addressing the toxicity of MPs on mammalian female reproduction are almost absent. Thus, the main objective of the present study was to assess the impact of oral exposure, during four estrous cycles, of 5 µm polystyrene-type microplastics (PS-MPs) on ovarian function in rats. Particles of PS-MPs were detected in the duodenum and, for the first time, in the different compartments of the ovarian tissue. The toxicity of accumulated PS-MPs was manifested by the reduced relative ovarian weights, by the alteration in the folliculogenesis and in the estrous cycle duration, and by the reduced serum concentration of estradiol. The defective ovarian function following PS-MP treatment might be due to the induction of oxidative stress, which has been proved by an increased malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration and an increased superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT) activities as well as a decreased protein sulfhydryl (PSH) level in the rat ovary. Importantly, by immunofluorescence and RT-PCR, we demonstrated a significant decrease in the expression of cytoskeletal proteins: α-tubulin and disheveled-associated activator of morphogenesis (DAAM-1) in the ovary of rats exposed to PS-MPs at proteomic and transcriptomic levels. Our results uncovered, for the first time, the distribution and accumulation of PS-MPs across rat ovary, revealed a significant alteration in some biomarkers of the ovarian function, and highlighted the possible involvement of MP-induced disturbance of cytoskeleton in these adverse effects.
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This study was supported by Ministry of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Technology of Tunisia. The funding sources were not involved in the design of the study, or collection and analysis of data.
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Conceptualization, Imed Messaoudi and Mohamed Banni; data curation, Asma Haddadi and Kaouthar Kessabi; formal analysis, Imed Messaoudi and Mohamed Banni; investigation, Asma Haddadi, Kaouthar Kessabi, Sana Boughammoura, Mariem Ben Rhouma, and Rania Mlouka; methodology, Kaouthar Kessabi, Sana Boughammoura, and Mariem Ben Rhouma; project administration, Imed Messaoudi; resources, Imed Messaoudi; supervision, Imed Messaoudi and Mohamed Banni; validation, Kaouthar Kessabi and Rania Mlouka; visualization, Mohamed Banni; writing—original draft, Asma Haddadi and Kaouthar Kessabi; writing—review and editing, Mohamed Banni and Imed Messaoudi.
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Haddadi, A., Kessabi, K., Boughammoura, S. et al. Exposure to microplastics leads to a defective ovarian function and change in cytoskeleton protein expression in rat. Environ Sci Pollut Res 29, 34594–34606 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-18218-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-18218-3