Unveiling the presence of endocrine disrupting chemicals in northern French soils: Land cover variability and implications

International audienceEndocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) are chemicals that can be found in the environment and have adverse effects on human health by mimicking, perturbing and blocking the function of hormones. They are commonly studied in water surfaces, rarely in soils, although it can be an important source of their presence in the environment. Their detection in soils is analytically challenging to quantify, hence the lack of known background concentrations found in the literature. This scientific research aimed to detect EDCs in soils by analyzing 240 soil samples using an optimized protocol of double extraction and analysis using liquid chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry. The optimized protocol allowed for very sensitive detection of the targeted compounds. The results showed a high concentration of 29.391 ng/g of 17β-estradiol in soils and 47.16 ng/g for 17α-ethinylestradiol. Testosterone and Progesterone were detected at a highest of 1.02 and 6.58 ng/g, respectively. The ∑EDCs which included estrogens, progesterone, testosterone and Bisphenol A was found at an average of 22.72 ± 35.46 ng/g in the study area. The results of this campaign showed a heterogeneous geographic distribution of the EDCs compounds in the different zones of study. Additionally, the study conducted a comparison of the concentration of EDCs in different land covers including urban areas, agricultural lands, grasslands and forests. We observed a significant difference between forests and other land covers (p < 0.0001) for 17α-ethinylestradiol, estriol, and progesterone. This presence of EDCs in forest lands is not yet understood and requires further studies concerning its origins, its fate and its effect on human health. This study is the first large-scale sampling campaign targeting EDCs in soils in Europe and the second in the world. It is also the first to assess the concentrations of these compounds based on different land covers

Supplementary Material for: Iron Deficiency Impairs Developing Hippocampal Neuron Gene Expression, Energy Metabolism, and Dendrite Complexity

Iron deficiency (ID), with and without anemia, affects an estimated 2 billion people worldwide. ID is particularly deleterious during early-life brain development, leading to long-term neurological impairments including deficits in hippocampus-mediated learning and memory. Neonatal rats with fetal/neonatal ID anemia (IDA) have shorter hippocampal CA1 apical dendrites with disorganized branching. ID-induced dendritic structural abnormalities persist into adulthood despite normalization of the iron status. However, the specific developmental effects of neuronal iron loss on hippocampal neuron dendrite growth and branching are unknown. Embryonic hippocampal neuron cultures were chronically treated with deferoxamine (DFO, an iron chelator) beginning at 3 days in vitro (DIV). Levels of mRNA for <i>Tfr1</i> and <i>Slc11a2,</i>iron-responsive genes involved in iron uptake, were significantly elevated in DFO-treated cultures at 11DIV and 18DIV, indicating a degree of neuronal ID similar to that seen in rodent ID models. DFO treatment decreased mRNA levels for genes indexing dendritic and synaptic development (i.e. <i>BdnfVI,</i><i>Camk2a,</i><i>Vamp1,</i><i>Psd95,</i><i>Cfl1, Pfn1,</i><i>Pfn2, and Gda</i>) and mitochondrial function (i.e. <i>Ucp2,</i><i>Pink1,</i> and <i>Cox6a1</i>). At 18DIV, DFO reduced key aspects of energy metabolism including basal respiration, maximal respiration, spare respiratory capacity, ATP production, and glycolytic rate, capacity, and reserve. Sholl analysis revealed a significant decrease in distal dendritic complexity in DFO-treated neurons at both 11DIV and 18DIV. At 11DIV, the length of primary dendrites and the number and length of branches in DFO-treated neurons were reduced. By 18DIV, partial recovery of the dendritic branch number in DFO-treated neurons was counteracted by a significant reduction in the number and length of primary dendrites and the length of branches. Our findings suggest that early neuronal iron loss, at least partially driven through altered mitochondrial function and neuronal energy metabolism, is responsible for the effects of fetal/neonatal ID and IDA on hippocampal neuron dendritic and synaptic maturation. Impairments in these neurodevelopmental processes likely underlie the negative impact of early life ID and IDA on hippocampus-mediated learning and memory

Description of the multi-dimensional environment at the territorial scale: A holistic framework using cluster analysis and open data in France

The impact of the environment on health is usually studied in a segmented manner, with a focus on a single source, pollutant, or exposure medium. To better understand spatial health inequalities, it is necessary to adopt multi-dimensional approaches to comprehensively describe the environment, especially at the territorial level. Clustering methods, which allow for the development of territorial typologies, are particularly interesting for this purpose. By simplifying complex datasets, these methods may reveal spatial patterns and geographical phenomena that would otherwise be difficult to observe. Based on the existing literature, there is a clear need for large-scale territorial typologies that comprehensively address the physical and outdoor environment.A robust and transposable framework was developed and applied to 3,041 municipalities in Northern France using open environmental data. It consists of five main steps: data collection, data selection, data preparation, cluster analysis, and cluster interpretation. This methodology allows for the development of an environmental classification of municipalities by identifying the primary environmental profiles represented in the study area. Cluster detection was performed based on 39 spatialized indicators that describe the level of environmental contamination (air, water, soil), the level of pollutant emissions, the proximity to emission sources, the land use, the agricultural practices, and the degree of naturalness in every municipality. As a result, municipalities were allocated into one of the seven following environmental profiles: (i) Dense urban centers; (ii) Peripheral urban municipalities; (iii) Intensive agricultural municipalities under urban influence; (iv) Intensive agricultural municipalities beyond urban influence; (v) More extensive and diversified agricultural municipalities; (vi) Municipalities with predominant livestock activities and significant natural areas; (vii) Municipalities with predominant natural areas: forests, wetlands, and water surfaces. The resulting typology goes far beyond a simple description of the urban–rural continuum. Five profiles of rural municipalities were identified, primarily distinguished by agricultural practices, degree of naturalness, and intensity of urban pressure.This approach enables researchers to identify the combination of environmental factors that shape a territory. It provides a more comprehensive and nuanced understanding of how environmental pressures and amenities are distributed in space and overlap with each other. By linking these typologies with health data, it could provide new insights into the etiology of complex diseases with unidentified environmental risk factors. Relying on open data, this framework is a valuable tool to assess etiological hypotheses at the territorial level

Critical Roles of Phosphorylation and Actin Binding Motifs, but Not the Central Proline-rich Region, for Ena/Vasodilator-stimulated Phosphoprotein (VASP) Function during Cell Migration

The Ena/vasodilator-stimulated phosphoprotein (VASP) protein family is implicated in the regulation of a number of actin-based cellular processes, including lamellipodial protrusion necessary for whole cell translocation. A growing body of evidence derived largely from in vitro biochemical experiments using purified proteins, cell-free extracts, and pathogen motility has begun to suggest various mechanistic roles for Ena/VASP proteins in the control of actin dynamics. Using complementation of phenotypes in Ena/VASP-deficient cells and overexpression in normal fibroblasts, we have assayed the function of a panel of mutants in one member of this family, Mena, by mutating highly conserved sequence elements found in this protein family. Surprisingly, deletion of sites required for binding of the actin monomer-binding protein profilin, a known ligand of Ena/VASP proteins, has no effect on the ability of Mena to regulate random cell motility. Our analysis revealed two features essential for Ena/VASP function in cell movement, cyclic nucleotide-dependent kinase phosphorylation sites and an F-actin binding motif. Interestingly, expression of the C-terminal EVH2 domain alone is sufficient to complement loss of Ena/VASP function in random cell motility

Psychophysics of sweet and fat perception in obesity: problems, solutions and new perspectives

Psychophysical comparisons seem to show that obese individuals experience normal sweet and fat sensations, they like sweetness the same or less, but like fat more than the non-obese do. These psychophysical comparisons have been made using scales (visual analogue or category) that assume intensity labels (e.g. extremely) which denote the same absolute perceived intensity to all. In reality, the perceived intensities denoted by labels vary because they depend on experiences with the substances to be judged. This variation makes comparisons invalid. Valid comparisons can be made by asking the subjects to rate their sensory/hedonic experiences in contexts that are not related to the specific experiences of interest. Using this methodology, we present the evidence that the sensory and hedonic properties of sweet and fat vary with body mass index. The obese live in different orosensory and orohedonic worlds than do the non-obese; the obese experience reduced sweetness, which probably intensifies fat sensations, and the obese like both sweet and fat more than the non-obese do. Genetic variation as well as taste pathology contribute to these results. These psychophysical advances will impact experimental as well as clinical studies of obesity and other eating disorders