A. Jay Gandolfi

PRECISION-CUT TISSUE SLICES : APPLICATIONS IN PHARMACOLOGY AND TOXICOLOGY

Almost a decade has passed since the first paper describing the isolation and maintenance of precision-cut liver slices produced using a mechanical tissue slicer was published (1). Although tissue slices of various organs have been employed as an in vitro system for several decades, the lack of reproducibility within the slices and the relatively limited viability of the tissue preparations has prevented a widespread acceptance of the technique. The production of an automated slicer, capable of reproducibly producing relatively thin slices of tissue, as well as the development of a dynamic organ culture system, overcame several of these obstacles. Since that time, significant advances in the methods to produce and culture tissue slices have been made, as well as the application of the technique to several other organs, including kidney, lung and heart. This review will i) summarize the historical use of tissue slices prior to the development of the precision-cut tissue slice system; ii) briefly analyze current methods to produce precision-cut liver, kidney, lung and heart slices; and iii) discuss the applications of this powerful in vitro system to the disciplines of pharmacology and toxicology.

Rice consumption contributes to arsenic exposure in US women

Emerging data indicate that rice consumption may lead to potentially harmful arsenic exposure. However, few human data are available, and virtually none exist for vulnerable periods such as pregnancy. Here we document a positive association between rice consumption and urinary arsenic excretion, a biomarker of recent arsenic exposure, in 229 pregnant women. At a 6-mo prenatal visit, we collected a urine sample and 3-d dietary record for water, fish/seafood, and rice. We also tested womens home tap water for arsenic, which we combined with tap water consumption to estimate arsenic exposure through water. Women who reported rice intake (n = 73) consumed a median of 28.3 g/d, which is ∼0.5 cup of cooked rice each day. In general linear models adjusted for age and urinary dilution, both rice consumption (g, dry mass/d) and arsenic exposure through water (μg/d) were significantly associated with natural log-transformed total urinary arsenic (, , both P < 0.0001), as well as inorganic arsenic, monomethylarsonic acid, and dimethylarsinic acid (each P < 0.005). Based on total arsenic, consumption of 0.56 cup/d of cooked rice was comparable to drinking 1 L/d of 10 μg As/L water, the current US maximum contaminant limit. US rice consumption varies, averaging ∼0.5 cup/d, with Asian Americans consuming an average of >2 cups/d. Rice arsenic content and speciation also vary, with some strains predominated by dimethylarsinic acid, particularly those grown in the United States. Our findings along with others indicate that rice consumption should be considered when designing arsenic reduction strategies in the United States.

Developmentally restricted genetic determinants of human arsenic metabolism: Association between urinary methylated arsenic and CYT19 polymorphisms in children

We report the results of a screen for genetic association with urinary arsenic metabolite levels in three arsenic metabolism candidate genes, PNP, GSTO, and CYT19, in 135 arsenic-exposed subjects from the Yaqui Valley in Sonora, Mexico, who were exposed to drinking water concentrations ranging from 5.5 to 43.3 ppb. We chose 23 polymorphic sites to test in the arsenic-exposed population. Initial phenotypes evaluated included the ratio of urinary inorganic arsenic(III) to inorganic arsenic(V) and the ratio of urinary dimethylarsenic(V) to monomethylarsenic(V) (D:M). In the initial association screening, three polymorphic sites in the CYT19 gene were significantly associated with D:M ratios in the total population. Subsequent analysis of this association revealed that the association signal for the entire population was actually caused by an extremely strong association in only the children (7–11 years of age) between CYT19 genotype and D:M levels. With children removed from the analysis, no significant genetic association was observed in adults (18–79 years). The existence of a strong, developmentally regulated genetic association between CYT19 and arsenic metabolism carries import for both arsenic pharmacogenetics and arsenic toxicology, as well as for public health and governmental regulatory officials.

Epigenetic remodeling during arsenical-induced malignant transformation

Humans are exposed to arsenicals through many routes with the most common being in drinking water. Exposure to arsenic has been associated with an increase in the incidence of cancer of the skin, lung and bladder. Although the relationship between exposure and carcinogenesis is well documented, the mechanisms by which arsenic participates in tumorigenesis are not fully elucidated. We evaluated the potential epigenetic component of arsenical action by assessing the histone acetylation state of 13 000 human gene promoters in a cell line model of arsenical-mediated malignant transformation. We show changes in histone H3 acetylation occur during arsenical-induced malignant transformation that are linked to the expression state of the associated gene. DNA hypermethylation was detected in hypoacetylated promoters in the select cases analyzed. These epigenetic changes occurred frequently in the same promoters whether the selection was performed with arsenite [As(III)] or with monomethylarsonous acid, suggesting that these promoters were targeted in a non-random fashion, and probably occur in regions important in arsenical-induced malignant transformation. Taken together, these data suggest that arsenicals may participate in tumorigenesis by altering the epigenetic terrain of select genes.

Epigenetic Mediated Transcriptional Activation of WNT5A Participates in Arsenical-Associated Malignant Transformation

Arsenic is a human carcinogen with exposure associated with cancer of the lung, skin, and bladder. Many potential mechanisms have been implicated as playing a role in the process of arsenical-induced malignancy including the perturbation of signaling pathways and aberrant epigenetic regulation. We initiated studies to examine the role of a member of the non-canonical WNT signaling pathway, WNT5A, in UROtsa cells and arsenite [URO-ASSC] and monomethylarsonous acid [URO-MSC] malignantly transformed variants. We present data herein that suggest that WNT5A is transcriptionally activated during arsenical-induced malignant transformation. This WNT5A transcriptional activation is correlated with the enrichment of permissive histone modifications and the reduction of repressive modifications in the WNT5A promoter region. The epigenetic activation of WNT5A expression and acetylation of its promoter remain after the removal of the arsenical, consistent with the maintenance of an anchorage independent growth phenotype in these cells. Additionally, treatment with epigenetic modifying drugs supports a functional role for these epigenetic marks in controlling gene expression. Reduction of WNT5A using lentiviral shRNA greatly attenuated the ability of these cells to grow in an anchorage independent fashion. Extension of our model into human bladder cancer cell lines indicates that each of the cell lines examined also express WNT5A. Taken together, these data suggest that the epigenetic remodeling of the WNT5A promoter is correlated with its transcriptional activation and this upregulation likely participates in arsenical-induced malignant transformation.

In vitro cytotoxicity of allyl alcohol and bromobenzene in a novel organ culture system

Two well-known hepatotoxicants, allyl alcohol (AA) and bromobenzene (BB), were studied using an in vitro system of cultured liver slices from control and phenobarbital-treated rats, respectively. Dose- and time-dependent increases in media lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and decreases in slice K+ content and in protein synthesis were observed in rat liver slices incubated with either compound at concentrations between 0.1 and 1 mM over a period of 6 hr. The histopathological changes which occurred in the intoxicated slices appeared to parallel these biochemical changes. Additionally, the toxicity of either BB or AA, evaluated at 4 hr, was inhibited when slices were preincubated for 30 min with beta-ethyl-2,2-diphenylvalerate hydrochloride (SKF 525-A) (0.1 mM) or pyrazole (1.0 mM), respectively. In this in vitro incubation system the cytotoxicity of xenobiotics can be studied under conditions where the multicellular hepatic lobular architecture is partially maintained, and alterations in biochemical and functional processes may be correlated to pathological changes.

Factors influencing halothane hepatotoxicity in the rat hypoxic model

Abstract Halothane, a widely used inhalation anesthetic, was shown to be hepatotoxic to male, phenobarbital-pretreated rats, only when administered under hypoxic conditions (fraction of inspired oxygen = 0.14). The degree of hepatotoxicity as determined from morphological alterations and serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (SGPT) activities, correlated well with concentrations of hepatic cytochrome P -450 and concentration of inspired halothane. Maximal lesion intensity developed within 12 to 24 hr after exposure to 1% halothane for as little as 30 min. By 4 days after exposure, the liver had repaired, since no morphological alterations were apparent and SGPT activities had returned to normal values. Female rats, when pretreated with phenobarbital and exposed to 1% halothane under hypoxic conditions did not develop liver injury. SKF-525A and metyrapone reduced the severity of liver injury when administered preanesthesia and 4 hr postanesthesia. The free sulhydryl-containing compounds, cysteine, cystamine, and N -acetylcysteine afforded protection when administered at 4 or 8 hr (cystamine) after ending anesthesia. These results support the hypothesis that reductive or noxoxygen-dependent biotransformation of halothane results in toxic intermediates that can initiate halothane-induced liver injury.

Halothane Biotransformation in Obese and Nonobese Patients

Serum levels of inorganic fluoride, trifluoracetic acid, and bromide ion were measured at various time intervals following two hours of halothane anesthesia in 17 morbidly obese and eight nonobese patients. Ionic fluoride, a marker of reductive halothane metabolism, increased in the obese but not the nonobese patients. This is of concern since reductive halothane metabolism is associated with hepatoxicity in animals. In addition, serum bromide levels were higher after 48 h in the obese patients compared to the nonobese patients (mean ± SE, 1,311 ± 114 vs. 787 ± 115 μM, P < 0.01). Sedative levels of bromide were not attained in any patient. Peak trifluoracetic acid levels were similar in the two patient groups. Sex, age, medication intake, and smoking history had no influence on the halothane metabolite levels found in this study.

Low-level arsenite induced gene expression in HEK293 cells ☆

Chronic, low-level exposure to arsenic frequently results in skin, lung, bladder, and kidney cancer. Since arsenic is primarily excreted via the kidney, this study focused on this target tissue. Gene array was used as a sensitive low-level monitor of the impact of arsenic on this target tissue. Arsenite [As(III)] was chosen as the chemical species of arsenic since As(III) species are touted as the cellular toxic form of arsenic. Human embryonic kidney cell line HEK293 cells were incubated with 1, 10, and 25 microM arsenite [As(III)] for 6 or 24 h. Total RNA from treated and control cells was isolated, reverse transcribed, and labeled with Cy3 or Cy5, and hybridized to a human cDNA microarray. Hybridizations were performed four times using independent total RNA preparations to ensure reproducibility. Raw data from 10 and 25 microM treated cells exposed for 6 h was normalized within, and between, hybridizations followed by identification of genes affected by arsenite exposure based on practical significance (2-fold change up or down) and reproducibility (affected in four of six measurements). In these studies, 20 genes (HMOX1, MT1E, or FOSL1, etc.) were up-regulated, and 19 genes (MYC, JAK1, or CENPE, etc.) were down-regulated. Genes identified at 10 and 25 microM arsenic exposure were then examined after 1 microM treatment for 6 or 24 h. Expression of affected genes showed a dose-dependent (1-25 microM) trend that was apparently not time-dependent (6 vs. 24 h). The affected genes indicate that even this realistic, low-level arsenite exposure was recognized by the HEK293 cells (e.g. metallothionein genes) and produced an oxidative stress (e.g. heme oxygenase gene). These affected genes were characterized as stress response genes, proto-oncogene, signaling molecules, transcription factors, chemokine receptors, proteolytic enzymes, ESTs, and unknown genes. These findings imply that arsenite induces complex cellular injury and the cellular adaptation to As(III) is associated with alterations in the expression of many genes.

Further examination of the selective toxicity of CCl4 in rat liver slices

Lipid peroxidation and loss of enzymes located predominantly in either periportal or centrilobular hepatocytes were investigated in precision-cut liver slices from male Sprague-Dawley rats. Pretreatment of animals with 80 mg/kg phenobarbital for the site-specific enzyme studies enhanced and accelerated CCl4 toxicity in slices resulting from increased radical formation. Liver slices were exposed to 0.57 mM CCl4 by vaporization using a roller incubation system at 37 degrees C for a total of 9 hr. Conjugated diene formation, an index of lipid peroxidation, was detected 15 min following CCl4 administration and increased over time. Loss of cytochrome P450 occurred in a time-dependent manner relative to controls where levels in treated slices were 42% of controls at 9 hr. A 48-hr fast prior to termination increased intracellular K+ leakage relative to that present in slices from fed animals. Significant leakage of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase and beta-glucuronidase from centrilobular hepatocytes occurred 9 hr following CCl4 administration. The content of the periportal enzymes (lactate dehydrogenase and sorbitol dehydrogenase) was unchanged in the same slices over the duration of the experiment. Reduction of 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5- diphenyltetrazolium bromide, a mitochondrial selective dye and indicator of viability, was significantly lower in treated slices from phenobarbital-treated animals at 9 hr relative to controls. These studies demonstrate that precision-cut slices are an ideal in vitro system for mechanistic studies and the investigation of site-specific toxicants since the integral architecture of the liver and cellular identity are maintained.