The Toxicologist - Society of Toxicology
The Toxicologist - Society of Toxicology
The Toxicologist - Society of Toxicology
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943 GENOME-WIDE DNA METHYLATION DIFFERENCES<br />
BETWEEN LATE-ONSET ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE AND<br />
COGNITIVELY NORMAL CONTROLS IN THE HUMAN<br />
FRONTAL CORTEX.<br />
K. Bakulski 1 , D. C. Dolinoy 1 , M.A.Sartor 1 , H. L. Paulson 2 , A. P.<br />
Lieberman 2 , R. L. Albin 2 , H. Hu 1, 2 andL.S.Rozek 2 . 1 School <strong>of</strong> Public Health,<br />
University <strong>of</strong> Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI and 2 Medical School, University <strong>of</strong><br />
Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI.<br />
Sporadic cases <strong>of</strong> late-onset Alzheimer’s disease (LOAD) are the most globally<br />
prevalent form <strong>of</strong> dementia, resulting in significant public health and economic<br />
burdens. Discordant twin studies highlight the non-Mendelian characteristics <strong>of</strong><br />
LOAD and prompt a further look at its potential environmental etiology. Primate<br />
studies demonstrate early life exposure to the heavy metal lead influences brain βamyloid<br />
deposition, a major hallmark <strong>of</strong> Alzheimer’s disease (AD), as well as DNA<br />
methyltransferase activity in late life. This foundational human study investigates<br />
DNA methylation differences between LOAD cases and controls, so that future<br />
work may associate environmental exposures with LOAD-specific epigenetic<br />
change. In 24 human post-mortem frontal cortex tissues from LOAD and cognitively<br />
normal age- and gender-matched subjects, quantitative DNA methylation<br />
was measured at 27,578 CpG sites spanning 14,475 genes via the Illumina<br />
Infinium HumanMethylation27 BeadArray. Based on parallel linear models with<br />
empirical Bayes methods, 958 CpG sites representing 928 unique genes were significantly<br />
associated with disease status. <strong>The</strong> top gene hit was recently implicated in<br />
Amyloid Precursor Protein post-translational processing, supporting a role for epigenetic<br />
change in AD pathology. Over 3,500 CpG sites were associated with an<br />
age-specific epigenetic drift, highlighting the importance <strong>of</strong> age adjustment in statistical<br />
modeling <strong>of</strong> disease methylation in late life. Future studies will evaluate cumulative<br />
lead exposure, as determined by ICP-MS lead levels in the occipital bone,<br />
to investigate the association between lead and LOAD-specific epigenetic change as<br />
a potential toxicological mechanism <strong>of</strong> disease. In human, relevant LOAD-disease<br />
tissue, this study demonstrates significant discordant DNA methylation and invites<br />
additional research associating environmental exposures.<br />
944 EPIGENETIC CHANGES DURING CO-<br />
CARCINOGENESIS OF N, N-DIETHYLNITROSAMINE<br />
AND CARBON TETRACHLORIDE IN MOUSE LIVER.<br />
K. Kutanzi 1 , I. Koturbash 1 , T. Uehara 2 , O. Kosyk 2 , I. Pogribny 1 and I. Rusyn 2 .<br />
1 National Center for Toxicological Research, U.S. FDA, Jefferson, AR and<br />
2 Department <strong>of</strong> Environmental Sciences and Engineering, UNC, Chapel Hill, NC.<br />
Global genomic hypomethylation and transcriptional silencing <strong>of</strong> cancer-related<br />
genes induced by promoter CpG island hypermethylation are important epigenetic<br />
events during human and rodent hepatocarcinogenesis. In human hepatocellular<br />
carcinoma, which develops mostly under conditions <strong>of</strong> liver fibrosis and cirrhosis,<br />
both global DNA methylation levels and gene-specific methylation status in tumorous<br />
and adjacent non-tumorous tissues have been established as important for<br />
tumor development and predictors <strong>of</strong> recurrence and overall patient survival. In animal<br />
models <strong>of</strong> experimental chemical-induced liver carcinogenesis, the role <strong>of</strong> fibrosis<br />
and epigenetic alterations is less understood. This study aimed to examine<br />
the epigenetic alterations caused by fibrosis and fibrosis-promoted tumor development<br />
in the mouse liver. Male B6C3F1 mice were treated with either a single dose<br />
(1 mg/kg) <strong>of</strong> N,N-diethylnitrosamine (DEN) or PBS at 15 days <strong>of</strong> age. Carbon<br />
tetrachloride (CCl4) treatment (0.2 ml/kg; i.p.; 2/week) was started at 8 weeks <strong>of</strong><br />
age and continued for 9 or 14 weeks. CCl4 treatment led to a severe bridging fibrosis<br />
with nodule-like features, which was accompanied by liver inflammation and<br />
steatosis. DEN treatment resulted in few histopathological changes except for the<br />
formation <strong>of</strong> pre-neoplastic foci. Loss <strong>of</strong> global DNA methylation and methylation<br />
<strong>of</strong> the repetitive DNA elements (i.e., LINE-1) in non-tumorous liver tissue was observed<br />
in CCl4 and CCL4+DEN (22 weeks <strong>of</strong> age) groups. At the same time,<br />
methylation-specific PCR showed progressive hyper-methylation <strong>of</strong> the promoters<br />
<strong>of</strong> p16(Ink4a), Rassf1a and Mgmt genes. This study provides evidence that progressive<br />
liver fibrosis is not only acting as a tumor promoter after DEN-initiation,<br />
but also has an effect on epigenetic modifications <strong>of</strong> the DNA which may also play<br />
a role in the mechanism <strong>of</strong> chemical-induced liver carcinogenesis in the mouse.<br />
945 AH RECEPTOR INHIBITS GENE EXPRESSION OF<br />
DELETED IN LIVER CANCER (DLC1) THROUGH<br />
REGULATION OF MICRORNA IN MOUSE LIVER CELLS.<br />
Y. Tian 1 , S. Ke 1 , M. Huang 2 , B. Zhou 1 and Z. Zhou 2 . 1 Program <strong>of</strong> <strong>Toxicology</strong>,<br />
Texas A&M University, College Station, TX and 2 School <strong>of</strong> Public Health, Fudan<br />
University, Shanghai, China.<br />
Dioxin and related compounds have been shown to promote hepatocarcinogenesis<br />
in rodent. Although the mechanism for the tumor promotion activity <strong>of</strong> dioxin is<br />
not clear, the activity is dependent on the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR).<br />
MicroRNA, together with other non-protein coding RNA have recently been<br />
found to possess critical functions for physiological and pathophysiological<br />
processes including carcinogenesis. In order to understand the mechanism <strong>of</strong> cancer<br />
promotion by dioxin we analyzed microRNA pr<strong>of</strong>iles in the mouse hepatocytes exposed<br />
to dioxin (10 nM, 24 hr). By surveying the microRNA regulated by AhR, we<br />
have identified a novel AhR target DLC1 (deleted in liver cancer 1) whose expression<br />
was regulated at post-transcriptional level by AhR complex. We found that activation<br />
<strong>of</strong> AhR by TCDD significantly suppressed the mRNA <strong>of</strong> DLC1 which is<br />
critical for hepatocarcinogenesis. <strong>The</strong> inhibition <strong>of</strong> DLC1 expression by dioxin is<br />
mediated by the AhR complex as both AhR and the AhR partner protein ARNT<br />
were required for the suppression <strong>of</strong> DLC1 by dioxin. <strong>The</strong> 3’UTR <strong>of</strong> DLC1 harbors<br />
several target sites <strong>of</strong> dioxin-induced microRNA. <strong>The</strong> reporter gene directed<br />
by the 3’ UTR <strong>of</strong> DLC1 is responsive to dioxin treatment in a AhR-dependent<br />
manner. <strong>The</strong>se results collectively suggest that DLC1 is an important target for ligand-activated<br />
AhR and AhR-regulated DLC1 gene expression may be important<br />
for the liver cancer promoting activity <strong>of</strong> dioxin and related toxic compounds<br />
(Supported in part by ES 09859 from NIEHS).<br />
946 INTER-STRAIN DIFFERENCES IN SUSCEPTIBILITY TO<br />
1, 3-BUTADIENE-INDUCED DNA DAMAGE,<br />
EPIGENETIC AFFECTS AND HEPATOTOXICITY.<br />
I. Pogribny 1 , K. Igor 1 , A. Scherhag 1 , J. Sorrentino 2 , S. Kennet 2 , W. Bodnar 2 , S.<br />
A. James 2 , B. A. Frederick 1 and R. Ivan 2 . 1 National Center for Toxicological<br />
Research, Jefferson, AR and 2 University <strong>of</strong> North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.<br />
1,3-Butadiene (BD) is a major industrial chemical and a common environmental<br />
contaminant which is classified as carcinogenic to humans. Both genetic and epigenetic<br />
factors may influence individual susceptibility to environmental toxicants and<br />
it has been suggested that BD exposure may yield variable adverse health outcomes<br />
in humans. In order to model the inter-individual differences in genetic and epigenetic<br />
effects <strong>of</strong> BD, we used a panel <strong>of</strong> inbred mouse strains (NOD/LtJ, CAST/EiJ,<br />
A/J, WSB/EiJ, PWK/PhJ, C57BL/6J and 129S/SvImJ) exposed to 0 or 625 ppm<br />
BD for 6 hours/day, 5 days/week for 2 weeks. <strong>The</strong> goals <strong>of</strong> this study were to compare<br />
the magnitude <strong>of</strong> inter-individual differences in BD toxicity between individual<br />
inbred strains <strong>of</strong> mice, and to investigate possible mechanisms <strong>of</strong> the effects on<br />
DNA damage, epigenetic alterations and hepatotoxicity. In CAST/EiJ strain, liver<br />
levels <strong>of</strong> N-7-(2,3,4-trihydroxybut-1-yl)guanine adducts in DNA were about 2fold<br />
lower than in other strains. Epigenetic effects were evident at the level <strong>of</strong> both<br />
DNA and histones. Global loss <strong>of</strong> hepatic DNA methylation was observed in<br />
PWK/PhJ, C57BL/6J, and 129S/SvImJ mice, with the greatest effect being detected<br />
in C57BL/6J mice. Loss <strong>of</strong> trimethylation <strong>of</strong> H3 lysines 9 and 27, and H4<br />
lysine 20 was found in C57BL/6J mice, while the opposite effect was detected in<br />
CAST/EiJ mice. Interestingly, gene expression analysis demonstrated altered expression<br />
<strong>of</strong> genes that are indicators <strong>of</strong> liver toxicity in C57BL/6J mice only. <strong>The</strong>se<br />
findings demonstrate that significant epigenetic events occur following BD and<br />
suggest that the differences in inter-individual susceptibility to BD exposure may be<br />
determined by variations in epigenetic response.<br />
947 ALTERED DNA METHYLATION PATTERNS IN<br />
INDIVIDUALS WITH ARSENICOSIS.<br />
L. Smeester 1 , J. Rager 1 , L. Zhang 6 , X. Guan 3 , N. Smith 1 , G. Garcia-Vargas 4 ,<br />
L. Del Razo 5 , Z. Drobna 2 , H. Kelkar 3 , G. Schroth 6 , M. Styblo 2 and R. Fry 1 .<br />
1 Environmental Sciences and Engineering, Gillings School <strong>of</strong> Global Public Health<br />
UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 2 Nutrition, Gillings School <strong>of</strong> Global Public<br />
Health UNC-Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 3 Center for Bioinformatics, UNC-<br />
Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, 4 Faculty <strong>of</strong> Medicine, Juarez University <strong>of</strong> Durango<br />
State, Juarez, Mexico, 5 Department <strong>of</strong> <strong>Toxicology</strong>, CINVESTAV-IPN, Mexico City,<br />
Mexico and 6 Illumina, Inc., Hayward, CA.<br />
Inorganic arsenic (iAs) is a documented carcinogen and an environmental toxicant,<br />
poisoning tens <strong>of</strong> millions <strong>of</strong> people worldwide through drinking water. Individuals<br />
exposed chronically to iAs are susceptible to arsenicosis, or arsenic poisoning. Such<br />
SOT 2011 ANNUAL MEETING 201