Abstract
Aflatoxins, and particularly aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), are toxic mycotoxins to humans and farm animal species, resulting in acute and chronic toxicities. At present, AFB1 is still considered a global concern with negative impacts on health, the economy, and social life. In farm animals, exposure to AFB1-contaminated feed may cause several untoward effects, liver damage being one of the most devastating ones. In the present study, we assessed in vitro the transcriptional changes caused by AFB1 in a bovine fetal hepatocyte-derived cell line (BFH12). To boost the cellular response to AFB1, cells were pre-treated with the co-planar PCB 3,3′,4,4′,5-pentachlorobiphenyl (PCB126), a known aryl hydrocarbon receptor agonist. Three experimental groups were considered: cells exposed to the vehicle only, to PCB126, and to PCB126 and AFB1. A total of nine RNA-seq libraries (three replicates/group) were constructed and sequenced. The differential expression analysis showed that PCB126 induced only small transcriptional changes. On the contrary, AFB1 deeply affected the cell transcriptome, the majority of significant genes being associated with cancer, cellular damage and apoptosis, inflammation, bioactivation, and detoxification pathways. Investigating mRNA perturbations induced by AFB1 in cattle BFH12 cells will help us to better understand AFB1 toxicodynamics in this susceptible and economically important food-producing species.
Highlights
Aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) is a secondary metabolite of fungi [1]
(1) Aflatoxin B1 deeply affected the cattle transcriptome, and the number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) (2,632 and 3,408 genes up- and downregulated, respectively) is consistent with those previously published with human hepatocytes
(2) The pathways mostly affected by aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) exposure are essentially cancer, cellular damage and apoptosis, inflammation, and drug metabolism and transport
Summary
It can contaminate both feed (cereals and oil-rich agricultural crops) and food (e.g., meat, milk, eggs), causing various diseases and health issues in humans and farmed animals. Livestock exposure to AFB1-contaminated feed can lead to significant economic losses [9,10]. These effects are species-specific, they depend on the animal’s individual susceptibility, the level of aflatoxins contamination, and the duration of the exposure [11]. Studying the effects of AFB1 in all livestock species and in different animal production systems (e.g., diverse production sectors, i.e., dairy or beef cattle, broilers or lying hens) appears of fundamental importance
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