Conducting bioinformatics analysis to predict sulforaphane-triggered adverse outcome pathways in healthy human cells

Potential mechanisms and modifications of dietary antioxidants on the associations between co-exposure to plastic additives and diabetes

BACKGROUND

The association of plastic additive mixture exposure with diabetes and the modifying effects of dietary antioxidants are unclear.

METHODS

The data from the NHANES 2011-2018 were retrieved, and phthalates and organophosphate esters (OPEs) were selected as exposures. The coexposure effect was analyzed by the environmental risk score (ERS) and quantile g-computation. To mitigate any potential bias caused by using the internal weights, another version of ERS was constructed using the cross-validation approach. The level of dietary antioxidant intake was measured by the composite dietary antioxidant index (CDAI). The biological mechanism underlying the association was studied by the adverse outcome pathway (AOP) framework.

RESULTS

Fifteen chemicals (ten phthalates and five OPEs) were measured in 2824 adult participants. A higher ERS was significantly associated with an increased risk of diabetes (OR per 1-SD increment of ERS: 1.25, 95% CI: 1.13-1.39). This association apparently interacted with the CDAI level (ORlow: 1.83, 95% CI: 1.37-2.55; ORhigh: 1.28, 95% CI: 1.15-1.45; Pinteraction = 0.038). Moreover, quantile g-computation also revealed higher level of combined exposure was positively associated with diabetes (OR: 1.27, 95% CI: 1.05-2.87), and the addition of dietary antioxidants showed a null association (OR: 1.09, 95% CI: 0.85-2.34). The AOP study identified TCPP and TCEP as key chemicals that cause aberrant glucose metabolism and insulin signaling pathways and result in diabetes.

CONCLUSIONS

Coexposure to phthalates and OPEs is positively associated with diabetes, where an antioxidative diet plays a modifying role. Several potential mechanisms have been proposed by AOP framework.

Synergistic delivery of hADSC-Exos and antioxidants has inhibitory effects on UVB-induced skin photoaging

Ultraviolet B (UVB) light exposure accelerates skin photoaging. Human adipose-derived stem cell exosomes (hADSC-Exos) and some antioxidants may have anti-photoaging effects. However, it is unknown whether the combination of hADSC-Exos and antioxidants plays a synergistic role in anti-photoaging. In cellular and 3D skin models, we showed that vitamin E (VE) and hADSC-Exos were optimal anti-photoaging combinations. In vivo, VE and hADSC-Exos increased skin tightening and elasticity in UVB-induced photoaging mice Combined treatment with VE and hADSC-Exos inhibited SIRT1/NF-κB pathway. These findings contribute to the understanding of hADSC-Exos in conjunction with other antioxidants, thereby providing valuable insights for the future pharmaceutical and cosmetic industries.

Sulforaphane-A Compound with Potential Health Benefits for Disease Prevention and Treatment: Insights from Pharmacological and Toxicological Experimental Studies

Sulforaphane (SFN), which is a hydrolysis product from glucoraphanin, a compound found in cruciferous vegetables, has been studied for its potential health benefits, particularly in disease prevention and treatment. SFN has proven to be effective in combating different types of cancer by inhibiting the proliferation of tumors and triggering apoptosis. This dual action has been demonstrated to result in a reduction in tumor size and an enhancement of survival rates in animal models. SFN has also shown antidiabetic and anti-obesity effects, improving glucose tolerance and reducing fat accumulation. SFN's ability to activate Nrf2, a transcription factor regulating oxidative stress and inflammation in cells, is a primary mechanism behind its anticancerogenic and antidiabetic effects. Its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-apoptotic properties are also suggested to provide beneficial effects against neurodegenerative diseases. The potential health benefits of SFN have led to increased interest in its use as a dietary supplement or adjunct to chemotherapy, but there are insufficient data on its efficacy and optimal doses, as well as its safety. This review aims to present and discuss SFN's potential in treating various diseases, such as cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, obesity, and neurodegenerative diseases, focusing on its mechanisms of action. It also summarizes studies on the pharmacological and toxicological potential of SFN in in vitro and animal models and explores its protective role against toxic compounds through in vitro and animal studies.

Identification of a small-molecule Tim-3 inhibitor to potentiate T cell-mediated antitumor immunotherapy in preclinical mouse models

T cell immunoglobulin and mucin-containing molecule 3 (Tim-3), expressed in dysfunctional and exhausted T cells, has been widely acknowledged as a promising immune checkpoint target for tumor immunotherapy. Here, using a strategy combining virtual and functional screening, we identified a compound named ML-T7 that targets the FG-CC' cleft of Tim-3, a highly conserved binding site of phosphatidylserine (PtdSer) and carcinoembryonic antigen-related cell adhesion molecule 1 (CEACAM1). ML-T7 enhanced the survival and antitumor activity of primary CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and human chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells and reduced their exhaustion in vitro and in vivo. In addition, ML-T7 promoted NK cells' killing activity and DC antigen-presenting capacity, consistent with the reported activity of Tim-3. ML-T7 strengthened DCs' functions through both Tim-3 and Tim-4, which is consistent with the fact that Tim-4 contains a similar FG-CC' loop. Intraperitoneal dosing of ML-T7 showed comparable tumor inhibitory effects to the Tim-3 blocking antibody. ML-T7 reduced syngeneic tumor progression in both wild-type and Tim-3 humanized mice and alleviated the immunosuppressive microenvironment. Furthermore, combined ML-T7 and anti-PD-1 therapy had greater therapeutic efficacy than monotherapy in mice, supporting further development of ML-T7 for tumor immunotherapy. Our study demonstrates a potential small molecule for selectively blocking Tim-3 and warrants further study.

CTD tetramers: a new online tool that computationally links curated chemicals, genes, phenotypes, and diseases to inform molecular mechanisms for environmental health

The molecular mechanisms connecting environmental exposures to adverse endpoints are often unknown, reflecting knowledge gaps. At the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD), we developed a bioinformatics approach that integrates manually curated, literature-based interactions from CTD to generate a "CGPD-tetramer": a 4-unit block of information organized as a step-wise molecular mechanism linking an initiating Chemical, an interacting Gene, a Phenotype, and a Disease outcome. Here, we describe a novel, user-friendly tool called CTD Tetramers that generates these evidence-based CGPD-tetramers for any curated chemical, gene, phenotype, or disease of interest. Tetramers offer potential solutions for the unknown underlying mechanisms and intermediary phenotypes connecting a chemical exposure to a disease. Additionally, multiple tetramers can be assembled to construct detailed modes-of-action for chemical-induced disease pathways. As well, tetramers can help inform environmental influences on adverse outcome pathways (AOPs). We demonstrate the tool's utility with relevant use cases for a variety of environmental chemicals (eg, perfluoroalkyl substances, bisphenol A), phenotypes (eg, apoptosis, spermatogenesis, inflammatory response), and diseases (eg, asthma, obesity, male infertility). Finally, we map AOP adverse outcome terms to corresponding CTD terms, allowing users to query for tetramers that can help augment AOP pathways with additional stressors, genes, and phenotypes, as well as formulate potential AOP disease networks (eg, liver cirrhosis and prostate cancer). This novel tool, as part of the complete suite of tools offered at CTD, provides users with computational datasets and their supporting evidence to potentially fill exposure knowledge gaps and develop testable hypotheses about environmental health.