基于模式生物秀丽隐杆线虫的环境污染物生殖毒性研究进展

由于人类社会的发展,环境污染也越来越严重,研究环境污染物对生态及人类健康的影响极为重要。生殖系统是人和动物繁衍后代的重要系统,常见环境污染物对生殖系统的影响正引起研究人员的广泛关注。秀丽隐杆线虫具有身体透明、品系丰富和遗传背景清楚等优点,为生殖毒理学研究提供了一个便利的平台。以秀丽隐杆线虫为模型已对多种环境污染物的生殖毒性进行了评价。本文重点叙述了重金属、纳米材料、有机物等化学污染,辐射、磁场等物理污染,以及病毒等生物污染对秀丽线虫生殖系统的影响,并归纳讨论了环境污染物造成生殖功能障碍的几种主要机制,如氧化应激、DNA损伤、内质网应激以及神经损伤等,但不同类型污染物的毒性效应与其自身的物化性质紧密相关。环境污染物诱导的生殖毒性中不同响应机制之间的关联性、不同发育阶段的敏感性差异、污染物的传代效应以及有效的缓解方式的筛选等都有待进一步的开展。

Progress on Reproductive Toxicity of Environmental Pollutants Based on Model Organism Caenorhabditis elegans

Along with the development of human society, environmental pollution is also getting severe, urging the study on the impact of environmental pollutants on human health and ecology. Reproductive systems are key to perpetuity of humans and other organisms, and so the effect of common environmental pollutants on reproduction has drawn widespread attention. Studies using the model nematode Caenorhabditis elegans offer several advantages, such as the diversity of strains, presence of a transparent body, and a clear genetic background. They serve as an ideal platform for reproductive toxicology research and have been used to evaluate the reproductive toxicity of various environmental pollutants. This review focuses on the effects of chemicals such as heavy metals, nanomaterials and organic compounds, and the physical and biological pollution sources such as radiation and viruses on the reproductive system of C. elegans. We summarize several major mechanisms of reproductive dysfunction caused by environmental pollutants, such as the oxidative stress, DNA damage, endoplasmic reticulum stress and nerve injury, but the toxic effects of different pollutants are linked to their physicochemical properties. The relationship between the different response mechanisms in the reproductive toxicity induced by environmental pollutants, the differences in sensitivity during different developmental stages, the trans-generational effect of pollutants, and the screening of effective mitigation methods need to be further clarified.