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Does Perfluorooctane Sulfonic Acid (PFOS) Affect the Mouse Immune System?
Author(s) -
Torres Luisa,
August Avery
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
the faseb journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.709
H-Index - 277
eISSN - 1530-6860
pISSN - 0892-6638
DOI - 10.1096/fasebj.2018.32.1_supplement.lb565
Subject(s) - immune system , perfluorooctanoic acid , perfluorooctane , chemistry , toxicity , neurotoxicity , environmental chemistry , immunotoxicology , andrology , immunology , biology , medicine , organic chemistry , sulfonate , sodium
Perfluorinated alkyl acids (PFAAs) have been used in numerous industrial applications as stain and water repellants, floor waxes, fire‐fighting foams, denture cleaners, shampoos, carpet spot cleaners, pharmaceutical products, and pesticides. PFAAs contain simple carbon chains bound to fluorine atoms as well as various substitution groups on the terminal end that dictate their active properties. The strength of the carbon‐fluorine bond makes perfluorinated compounds extremely resistant to environmental degradation, thereby leading to persistence in the environment. Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS) is the PFAA most commonly found in both human and wildlife blood samples. PFOS exposure has been linked to hepatotoxicity, neurotoxicity, endocrine disruption, and carcinogenicity, but little is known regarding its impact on the immune system. To assess the effect of PFOS on populations of immune cells, we exposed adult male and female C57BL/6 mice to a low dose of PFOS (5μg/kg/day) via oral gavage every other day for 12 or 30 days. We observed a reduction in the number and percentage of lymphocytes as well as a reduction in the numbers of T cells and natural killer cells in the thymus and fat tissue of the mice after 12 days of exposure. However, these changes were not observed at 30 days. These results suggest either a transient reduction in immune cells, or short‐term redistribution of immune cells to other tissues upon oral exposure to PFOS. Future work will determine the impact of longer‐term PFOS exposure on populations of immune cells, as well as effects on response to viral infections, and antibody responses. This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal .