Exposure to bisphenol-A during pregnancy partially mimics the effects of a high-fat diet altering glucose homeostasis and gene expression in adult male mice

PLoS One. 2014 Jun 24;9(6):e100214. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0100214. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Bisphenol-A (BPA) is one of the most widespread EDCs used as a base compound in the manufacture of polycarbonate plastics. The aim of our research has been to study how the exposure to BPA during pregnancy affects weight, glucose homeostasis, pancreatic β-cell function and gene expression in the major peripheral organs that control energy flux: white adipose tissue (WAT), the liver and skeletal muscle, in male offspring 17 and 28 weeks old. Pregnant mice were treated with a subcutaneous injection of 10 µg/kg/day of BPA or a vehicle from day 9 to 16 of pregnancy. One month old offspring were divided into four different groups: vehicle treated mice that ate a normal chow diet (Control group); BPA treated mice that also ate a normal chow diet (BPA); vehicle treated animals that had a high fat diet (HFD) and BPA treated animals that were fed HFD (HFD-BPA). The BPA group started to gain weight at 18 weeks old and caught up to the HFD group before week 28. The BPA group as well as the HFD and HFD-BPA ones presented fasting hyperglycemia, glucose intolerance and high levels of non-esterified fatty acids (NEFA) in plasma compared with the Control one. Glucose stimulated insulin release was disrupted, particularly in the HFD-BPA group. In WAT, the mRNA expression of the genes involved in fatty acid metabolism, Srebpc1, Pparα and Cpt1β was decreased by BPA to the same extent as with the HFD treatment. BPA treatment upregulated Pparγ and Prkaa1 genes in the liver; yet it diminished the expression of Cd36. Hepatic triglyceride levels were increased in all groups compared to control. In conclusion, male offspring from BPA-treated mothers presented symptoms of diabesity. This term refers to a form of diabetes which typically develops in later life and is associated with obesity.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adipose Tissue / anatomy & histology
  • Adipose Tissue / drug effects
  • Adipose Tissue / metabolism
  • Animals
  • Benzhydryl Compounds / administration & dosage
  • Benzhydryl Compounds / pharmacology*
  • Body Weight / drug effects
  • Diet, High-Fat*
  • Estrogens, Non-Steroidal / administration & dosage
  • Estrogens, Non-Steroidal / pharmacology*
  • Fatty Acids / blood
  • Female
  • Gene Expression Regulation / drug effects*
  • Glucose / metabolism*
  • Glucose Intolerance / genetics
  • Homeostasis / drug effects*
  • Homeostasis / genetics*
  • Insulin / metabolism
  • Insulin Resistance / genetics
  • Insulin-Secreting Cells / drug effects
  • Insulin-Secreting Cells / metabolism
  • Liver / drug effects
  • Liver / metabolism
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Muscle, Skeletal / drug effects
  • Muscle, Skeletal / metabolism
  • Phenols / administration & dosage
  • Phenols / pharmacology*
  • Pregnancy

Substances

  • Benzhydryl Compounds
  • Estrogens, Non-Steroidal
  • Fatty Acids
  • Insulin
  • Phenols
  • Glucose
  • bisphenol A

Grants and funding

This research was supported by grants from Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad grants, BFU2011-28358 and BFU2010-21773, and Generalitat Valenciana grants Prometeo/2011/080 and ACOMP/2010/113. The “Centro de Investigacion Biomedica en Red de Diabetes y Enfermedades Metabolicas Asociadas” is an initiative of the Instituto de Salud Carlos III. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.