A new technique developed in a recent study at the Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet now offers a paradigm shift. This groundbreaking method enables researchers to screen for endocrine-disrupting chemicals without involving animal testing. Led by Linus Wiklund, a Ph.D. student and the study’s first author, the research aims to develop a ‘fingerprint’ for endocrine-disrupting properties based on gene expression. This groundbreaking new approach has the potential to revolutionize the future of our chemical assessment and safety evaluations.
The study, published in Environment International, explores the effects of two suspected endocrine disruptors: Cadmium and PCB-126. By sequencing the transcriptomes of zebrafish embryos exposed to these chemicals, Wiklund and his team have created a data-driven framework that could significantly enhance the identification of harmful substances.
A New Approach to Chemical Assessment
The study uses a creative combination of automated, data-driven approaches with manual, expert-driven processes. This potent combination creates a robust framework for making biological process to event connections within an AOP network. This dual approach results in much more powerful and accurate data on how chemicals might interfere with hormones.
Environmental health scientist Ashley Wiklund notes the value of using existing data to toxicology research. As he put it, “Academic research produces a lot of mechanistic data about toxic effects, but nobody really knows how to use it for risk assessment. There’s an urgent need for new ways to begin using all this data.”
The earlier study has implications that extend even further beyond its findings. It poses tremendous challenges to researchers and regulators alike. As the field of toxicology is shifting towards more predictive approaches, there’s an even greater need for methods that minimize or eliminate the use of animal testing.
Exploring Endocrine Disruptors
The health and environmental impacts of two contaminants, Cadmium and PCB-126, were notably studied given their larger negative impacts on the human society and environment. These chemicals, known as endocrine disruptors, can disrupt hormonal systems and cause negative health effects. The new technological capacity to screen for these compounds using gene expression patterns is an enormous leap forward in the realm of chemical safety.
Wiklund said that it was urgent to test the methodology with many different compounds. By measuring the activity of compounds with established endocrine disruptors and those lacking endocrine-disrupting properties, we might find a “fingerprint” for these effects at the level of gene expression. This fingerprint can then further allow us to understand how to better prioritize new compounds. This strong statement underscores the study’s potential to lay the groundwork for wider applications of this approach in chemical testing.
Future Implications
Results from this study could be used by regulatory agencies to more rapidly and efficiently identify new compounds that pose a risk to disrupt the endocrine system. Legislation dealing with chemical safety is becoming more stringent. Approaches such as this can make public health a priority and protect/build communities before tragedy strikes.