1. Academic Validation
  2. Sperm Rhoa m6A modification mediates intergenerational transmission of paternally acquired hippocampal neuronal senescence and cognitive deficits after combined exposure to environmental cadmium and high-fat diet in mice

Sperm Rhoa m6A modification mediates intergenerational transmission of paternally acquired hippocampal neuronal senescence and cognitive deficits after combined exposure to environmental cadmium and high-fat diet in mice

  • J Hazard Mater. 2023 Jun 19;458:131891. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131891.
Jin Zhang 1 Yong-Wei Xiong 1 Lu-Lu Tan 2 Xin-Mei Zheng 2 Yu-Feng Zhang 2 Qing Ling 2 Chao Zhang 3 Hua-Long Zhu 1 Wei Chang 2 Hua Wang 4
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Department of Toxicology, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, China; Key Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology of Anhui Higher Education Institutes, China; Key Laboratory of Population Health Across Life Cycle (Anhui Medical University), Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, China.
  • 2 Department of Toxicology, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, China; Key Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology of Anhui Higher Education Institutes, China.
  • 3 Teaching Center for Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, 81 Meishan Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230032, China.
  • 4 Department of Toxicology, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, China; Key Laboratory of Environmental Toxicology of Anhui Higher Education Institutes, China; Key Laboratory of Population Health Across Life Cycle (Anhui Medical University), Ministry of Education of the People's Republic of China, China. Electronic address: wanghuadev@ahmu.edu.cn.
Abstract

Little is currently known about the effect and mechanism of combined paternal environmental cadmium (Cd) and high-fat diet (HFD) on offspring cognitive ability. Here, using in vivo model, we found that combined paternal environmental Cd and HFD caused hippocampal neuronal senescence and cognitive deficits in offspring. MeRIP-seq revealed m6A level of Rhoa, a regulatory gene of cellular senescence, was significantly increased in combined environmental Cd and HFD-treated paternal sperm. Interestingly, combined paternal environmental Cd and HFD markedly enhanced Rhoa mRNA, its m6A and reader protein IGF2BP1 in offspring hippocampus. STM2457, the inhibitor of m6A modification, markedly mitigated paternal exposure-caused the elevation of hippocampal Rhoa m6A, neuronal senescence and cognitive deficits in offspring. In vitro experiments, Rhoa siR significantly reversed mouse hippocampal neuronal senescence. Igf2bp1 siR obviously reduced the level and stability of Rhoa in aging mouse hippocampal neuronal cells. In conclusion, combined paternal environmental Cd and HFD induce offspring hippocampal neuronal senescence and cognitive deficits by promoting IGF2BP1-mediated Rhoa stabilization in offspring hippocampus via elevating Rhoa m6A in paternal sperm.

Keywords

Cadmium; Cognitive ability; High-fat diet; Paternal; Sperm m6A.

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