Antenatal Exposure to Plastic Pollutants: Study of the Bisphenols and Perfluoroalkyls Effects on Human Stem Cell Models

• Published in: Exposure and health Vol. 16; no. 3; pp. 693 - 714
• Main Authors: Gaggi, Giulia, Di Credico, Andrea, Barbagallo, Federica, Ballerini, Patrizia, Ghinassi, Barbara, Di Baldassarre, Angela
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01-06-2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Amniocentesis; Amniotic fluid; Androgens; Aquatic Pollution; Bisphenol A; Breastfeeding & lactation; Cell culture; Cell proliferation; Earth and Environmental Science; Embryos; Endocrine disruptors; Endocrine system; Environment; Environmental Health; Estrogens; Ethics; Exposure; Fetuses; Food contamination; Hormones; Industrial applications; Industrial pollution; Ingestion; Intrauterine exposure; Low concentrations; Metabolism; Original Paper; Penicillin; Perfluoro compounds; Perfluoroalkyl & polyfluoroalkyl substances; Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid; Perfluorooctanoic acid; Placenta; Plastic pollution; Pluripotency; Pollutants; Pollution; Pregnancy; Stem cells; Toxicity; Waste Water Technology; Water and Health; Water Management; Water Pollution Control; Water Quality/Water Pollution; Canada; United States > US; Endocrine disruptors; iPSCs; BPA; BPS; Human stem cells; PFOA; Perinatal stem cells; Antenatal exposure; PFOS
• ISSN: 2451-9766; 2451-9685
• DOI: 10.1007/s12403-023-00586-5

Endocrine disruptors (EDs), such as Bisphenols (BPs) and Perfluoroalkyls (PFs), are a class of plastic pollutants widely used in industrial applications. Human exposure to these molecules usually occurs through ingestion of contaminated food and water. Once entered the human body they can interfere with endogenous hormone signaling, leading to a wide spectrum of diseases. It has been reported that BPs and PFs can cross the placental barrier accumulating in the fetal serum, but the detrimental consequences for human development remain to be clarified. Here we analyze the effects of different doses of bisphenol A and S (BPA, BPS) perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) on proliferation and mitochondrial health on different types of stem cells: through an integrated approach that combines data from pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) with that from the “environment” in which the embryo develops (fetal annexes-derived perinatal stem cells) we verified the potential developmental toxicity of the in utero EDs exposure. Data obtained showed that overall, BPs, and PFs tended to increase the proliferation rate of perinatal stem cells; a similar response was observed in hiPSCs exposed to very low doses of BPs and PFs, while at higher concentrations these chemicals were toxic; in addition, both the BPs and the PFs exerted a mitotoxic effects hiPSCs at all the concentration studied. All these data suggest that antenatal exposure to BPs and PFs, also at very low concentrations, may modify the biological characteristics of stem cells present in both the developing fetus and the fetal annexes, thus perturbing normal human development.