LINE-1 retrotransposon activation in non-tumorigenic mammary epithelial cells exposed to pesticides. A link to why is breast cancer on the rise?

PONTILLO, CAROLINA A.; LASAGNA, MARIANELA; RANDI, ANDREA S.; MIRET, NOELIA V.; ZÁRATE, LORENA V.; COCCA, CLAUDIA; ZAPPIA, C. DANIEL; LEGUIZAMÓN, M. AGUSTINA; MONCZOR, FEDERICO

CABA

Congreso; REUNIÓN ANUAL DE SOCIEDADES DE BIOCIENCIA 2020; 2020

Sociedad Argentina de Investigación Clínica

Pesticides exposure is linked to the rise in breast cancer incidence. Long interspersed nuclear element-1 (LINE-1) is inhibited in somatic tissues but its reactivation was implicated in mammary tumorigenesis. The pesticides hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and chlorpyrifos (CPF), both ligands of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), increase LINE-1 activation in breast cancer cells MDA-MB-231, through AhR/c-Src and TGF-β1/Smad3 signaling. Our aim was to evaluate if LINE-1 can be activated by pesticide exposure in non-tumorigenic mammary epithelial cells NMuMG. We used environmentally relevant doses of CPF (0.05-50 µM) and HCB (0.005-5 µM). LINE-1 mRNA levels were examined by RT-qPCR, finding an increment after 48 h of exposure with CPF (0.05-5 µM, p