Benzo(a)pyrene inhibits endometrial cell apoptosis in early pregnant mice via the WNT5A pathway

In this study, we focused on the effect of BaP on endometrial cell apoptosis and the role of WNT signaling during this process. Pregnant mice were gavaged with corn o il (control group) or 0.2 mg·kg−1·day−1 BaP (treatment group) from Days 1 to 6 of pregnancy. BaP impaired endometrial function by decreasing the expression of HOXA10 and BMP2, two markers of receptivity and decidualization. WNT5A and β‐catenin were activated in the BaP group. BaP affected the expression of apoptosis‐related proteins and inhibited the apoptosis of endometrial stromal cells. In vitro, human endometrial stromal cells (HESCs) were treated with different concentrations of BaP (dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO); 5, 10  µM). WNT5A and β‐catenin were also upregulated in the BaP treatment group. HESC apoptosis was restrained by BaP. Inhibiting WNT5A by SFRP5 partially restored the effect of BaP on apoptosis. In summary, these results suggested that BaP exposure during early pregnancy activates WNT5A/β‐catenin signaling pathway, which inhibits the endometrial cell apoptosis and potentially destroys endometrial function.

Source: Journal of Cellular Physiology - November 15, 2018 Category: Cytology Authors: Ting Yi, Min Liu, Xueyan Li, Xueqing Liu, Yubin Ding, Junlin He, Hanting Xu, Rufei Gao, Xinyi Mu, Yanqing Geng, Yingxiong Wang, Xuemei Chen Tags: ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE Source Type: research