Effects of T-2 toxin on the regulation of steroidogenesis in mouse Leydig cells

In this study, we further examined the direct biological effects of T-2 toxin on the process of steroidogenesis, primarily in Leydig cells of mice. Leydig cells of mature mouse were purified by Percoll gradient centrifugation and the cell purity was determined by 3β-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (3β-HSD) staining. To examine the decrease in T-2 toxin-induced testosterone secretion, we measured the transcription level of three key steroidogenic enzymes including 3β-HSD-1, cytochrome P450 side-chain cleavage (P450scc) enzyme, and steroidogenic acute regulatory (StAR) protein in T-2 toxin/human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) co-treated cells. Our previous study showed that T-2 toxin (10–7, 10–8, and 10–9 M) significantly suppressed hCG (10 ng/ml)-induced testosterone secretion. The studies demonstrated that the suppressive effect is correlated with a decrease in the level of transcription of 3β-HSD-1, P450scc, and StAR (p < 0.05).

Source: Toxicology and Industrial Health - September 27, 2016 Category: Toxicology Authors: Yang, J. Y., Zhang, Y. F., Li, Y. X., Guan, G. P., Kong, X. F., Liang, A. M., Ma, K. W., Da Li, G., Bai, X. F. Tags: Articles Source Type: research