In Vitro Studies on Atrazine Effects on Human Intestinal Cells

Abstract

Considering the importance of the oral route for human exposure to atrazine, we have investigated the possible effect of this herbicide on the human intestinal cells and the integrity of the epithelial barrier, using Caco-2 cells as the intestinal model in vitro. We evaluated possibile cytotoxic and genotoxic effects of atrazine in concentrations ranging from 1 to 250 μM on the Caco-2 cells at different stages of growth after short-and long-term exposure. Results from the tetrazolium blue (MTT) test and the Trypan blue exclusion assay showed that atrazine cytotoxicity was dose-and time-dependent. Obtained data indicated that atrazine at high concentrations (50 and 250 μM) was able to induce effects on Caco-2 proliferation and viability. Moreover, it was found that the long-term exposure to atrazine at the noncytotoxic dose caused inhibition of the intestinal cell maturation and decreased the transepithelial electrical resistance, the indicator of the epithelial barrier integrity. Studies on the atrazine genotoxicity determined using the single cell microelectrophoresis assay indicated that atrazine did not induce DNA damages in the Caco-2 cells at concentrations of up to 50 μM, whereas enhancement in the DNA damage was observed at 250 μM. Altogether, our results indicate that atrazine at expected human oral exposure concentrations is not able to induce effects on the Caco-2 cell proliferation and viability, but may suppress the intestinal cell differentiation and reduce the cell monolayer integrity. We suggest that chronic exposure on low levels of atrazine may lead to alteration in the expression of the morphological and functional features of the Caco-2 cells related to the transport and barrier function of small intestinal enterocytes. In consequence, this may lead to alterations in the intestinal absorption process.

Kolaviron Biflavanoids of Garcinia Kola Seeds Protect Atrazine-Induced Cytotoxicity in Primary Cultures of Rat Leydig Cells

“…Because the concentration of ATZ used in the present study were higher than those reported for other cells 7,9,15 and similar to that used in the Caco-2 cells, 16 we think that Leydig cell effect may not be an important component of ATZ toxicity. The results showed that Kol had no deleterious effects on Leydig cell viability as demonstrated in the MTT assay.…”

“…14 Moreover, ATZ affects cell growth, proliferation, and differentiation in several experimental models exposed to ATZ in vitro. 9,15,16 In the present study, the toxicity of ATZ was further investigated using a ILC culture model. Kol, because of its antioxidant properties, was chosen to examine its attenuating effect on cytotoxicity caused by ATZ.…”

Glyphosate vs. Glyphosate-Based Herbicides Exposure: A Review on Their Toxicity

“…Mentioned above, atrazine is noted as one of the most used herbicides worldwide; its presence has been confirmed in air, fog, ice, seawater, freshwater and rain [ 9 , 10 ]. Concerning its effect on human health, atrazine acts as a potential endocrine disruptor [ 10 , 11 ], modulates the cell cycle and the cell growth, affects the intestinal epithelium transport regulation, and presents liver cytotoxicity and genotoxicity [ 10 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ]. These reasons were behind the ban applied by the European Union to this chemical in 2004 [ 9 ].…”

Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and immunochromatographic strip for rapid detection of atrazine in water samples

“…It is known that atrazine has potential biological toxicity. Some studies have shown that exposure to atrazine may cause physiological disorders of humans and animals [4,5]. Therefore, there is a need for monitoring atrazine residue levels.…”