Objective: To investigate the effects of 2, 2', 4, 4'-tetrabromodiphenyl ether ( BDE-47 ) on the differentiation of mouse embryonic fibroblasts-3T3-L1, so as to provide the basis for revealing the mechanism of environmental obesity factors. Methods: The 3T3-L1 cells were divided into five BDE-47 intervention groups ( 25, 18.75, 12.5, 7.5 and 2.5 µmol/L ), a positive control group (1 µmol/L 2, 4-thiazolidinedione) and a negative control group ( 0.1% dimethyl sulfoxide ) for the induction of differentiation. The lipid droplet accumulation in adipocytes was observed by oil red O staining treatment and detection of optical desity ( OD ) on the eighth day of differentiation. Triglyceride ( TG ) content was measured using the histiocyte TG enzymatic assay kit. The mRNA expression of adiponectin and peroxisome proliferator activated receptor-γ ( PPARγ ) was measured by RT-PCR. Results: The positive areas of oil red O staining, OD values, TG content and mRNA expression of adiponectin and PPARγ in 3T3-L1 cells were significantly different among seven groups ( P<0.05 ). The positive areas of oil red O staining and OD values in the BDE-47 groups with different concentrations were higher than those in the negative control group ( P<0.05 ). The 18.75 µmol/L BDE-47 group had higher TG levels than the negative control group ( P<0.05 ). The mRNA expression of PPARγ in the 25, 18.75, 12.5, and 7.5 µmol/L BDE-47 groups and the positive control group was higher than that in the negative control group ( P<0.05 ). The mRNA expression of PPARγ in the 12.5 µmol/L BDE-47 group was higher than that in the 25, 18.75, 7.5, 2.5 µmol/L BDE-47 group and the positive control group ( P<0.05 ). The mRNA expression of adiponectin in the 12.5, 7.5 µmol/L BDE-47 group and the positive control group was higher than that in the negative control group ( P<0.05 ). The mRNA expression of adiponectin in the 12.5 µmol/L BDE-47 group was higher than that in the 25, 18.75, 2.5 µmol/L BDE-47 group ( P<0.05 ). The mRNA expression of PPARγ and adiponectin in the different concentration groups of BDE-47 distributed like inverted "U" shape. Conclusion BDE-47 can promote the differentiation of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes. Low concentration of BDE-47 may induce adipocyte differentiation by activating PPARγ.

Objective: To investigate the effects of decabromodiphenyl ether (BDE-209) on the size of subcutaneous transplanted tumors, related genes and signaling pathways of cervical cancer in mice. Methods: Forty female C57BL/6 mice were subcutaneously inoculated with mouse cervical carcinoma U14 cells in the lateral axilla to establish a mouse subcutaneous transplanted tumor model. These mice were randomly divided into a high-dose group (500 mg/kg), a medium-dose group (100 mg/kg), a low-dose group (20 mg/kg) and a control group (corn oil), and were exposed to BDE-209 or corn oil by gavage. Subcutaneous transplanted tumor tissue was taken after 21 days of BDE-209 poisoning, and the differentially expressed genes in the subcutaneous transplanted tumors of cervical cancer among the four groups were analyzed by high-throughput transcriptome sequencing and were subjected to Gene Ontology (GO) annotations and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway analysis. Protein-protein interactions (PPI) were analyzed using the STRING database, and the mRNA expression of hub genes was determined by real-time fluorescence polymerase chain reaction. Results: Compared with the control group, low-dose group and medium-dose group, the mass of subcutaneous transplanted tumors in the high-dose group was decreased (all P<0.05). Transcriptome sequencing results showed that compared with the control group, 2 011 genes were up-regulated and 1 165 genes were down-regulated in the high-dose group; 960 genes were up-regulated and 357 genes were down-regulated in the medium-dose group; 537 genes were up-regulated and 262 genes were down-regulated in the low-dose group (all P<0.05). GO and KEGG analysis showed that the differentially expressed genes in the high-dose group were mainly involved in cell chemotaxis and NOD-like receptor signaling pathway; the differentially expressed genes in the medium-dose group were mainly involved in cell chemotaxis and cytokine-cytokine receptor interactions; and the differentially expressed genes in the medium-dose group were mainly involved in processing and presentation of antigens, and the signaling pathways of the complement and coagulation cascades. Compared with the control group, the mRNA expression of TLR2, MMP9, IL-6, Fos, and TNF was up-regulated in the high-dose group (all P<0.05). Conclusion High-dose BDE-209 may affect Toll-like receptors, NOD-like receptors, and other immune and inflammatory-related signaling pathways and cancer-related genes, leading to a decrease in the mass of subcutaneous transplanted cervical cancer tumors in mice.