The role of Sertoli cells-secreted factors in different stages of germ cells development in mice exposed to BDE-209

Environ Pollut. 2024 Mar 17;347:123775. doi: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.123775. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTDecabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209), a frequently used brominated flame retardant, readily enters the environment and is difficult to degrade with bioaccumulation. BDE-209 could cause male reproductive toxicity, but the regulatory functions of Sertoli cells-secreted factors remain uncertain. In present study, male mice were treated with 75 mg/kg BDE-209 and then stopped exposure for 50 days. Exogenous Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF), a Sertoli cell-secreted factor, was injected into testes of mice treated with BDE-209 for 50 days to explore the role of GDNF in BDE-209-induced reproductive toxicity. The mouse spermatogonia cell line GC-1 spg was used in vitro to further verify regulatory effects of Sertoli cells-secreted factors on meiotic initiation. The results showed that BDE-209 inhibited expressions of the self-renewal pathway GFRα-1/RAS/ERK1/2 in spermatogonial stem cells (SSCs), and reduced expressions of spermatogonia proliferation-related pathway NRG3/ERBB4 and meiosis initiation factor Stra8. Furthermore, BDE-209 decreased the levels of both GDNF and retinoic acid (RA) secreted by Sertoli cells in testes. Importantly, the alterations of above indicators induced by BDE-209 did not recover after 50-day recovery period. After exogenous GDNF injection, the decreased expression of GFRα-1/RAS/ERK in SSCs was reversed. However, the level of RA and expr...
Source: Environmental Pollution - Category: Environmental Health Authors: Source Type: research