2. Academic Validation
  3. Aspirin Alleviates Particulate Matter Induced Asymptomatic Orchitis of Mice via Suppression of cGAS-STING Signaling

Aspirin Alleviates Particulate Matter Induced Asymptomatic Orchitis of Mice via Suppression of cGAS-STING Signaling

  • Front Immunol. 2021 Dec 1:12:734546. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.734546.
Tengyu Zhu 1 2 3,  Xue Chen 1 2,  Huan Qiu 1 2,  Yang Liu 1 2,  James Mwangi 1 2,  Ling Zhao 4,  Wenjun Ding 5,  Ren Lai 1 2 6,  Lin Jin 1 2
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Key Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms of Chinese Academy of Sciences/Key Laboratory of Bioactive Peptides of Yunnan Province, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China.
  • 2 Kunming College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China.
  • 3 College of Life Sciences, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China.
  • 4 Experimental Animal Center, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China.
  • 5 Laboratory of Environment and Health, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
  • 6 Kunming institute of zoology-the Chinese university of Hong Kong (KIZ-CUHK) Joint Laboratory of Bioresources and Molecular Research in Common Diseases, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, China.
PMID: 34925318 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.734546
Abstract

As an important source of air pollutant, airborne particulate matter (PM) has become a major threat to public health. Orchitis is characterized by acute or chronic testicular inflammation and is a primary cause of male infertility. Although accumulating evidence indicates that PM exposure is associated with increased male infertility rates, the mechanism by which PM is involved is not well understood. Here, we found that short-term PM exposure activated NF-κB signaling in mouse Leydig cells and testes and leading to asymptomatic orchitis. Analyzing the mitochondrial abundance and cGAMP levels in PM exposed mouse Leydig cells, we found that PM exposure induced mitochondrial injury and mtDNA release, leading to inflammation via the cGAS-STING axis. We also found that aspirin-induced acetylation of cGAS inhibited the inflammation in mice after PM exposure, especially in the testes. Moreover, aspirin pretreatment rescued offspring growth in PM-exposed mice. In summary, our study not only provides evidence that PM-induced asymptomatic orchitis in mice may be amenable to aspirin pre-treatment by acetylating cGAS, but also provides a potential explanation for male infertility caused by air pollutants.

Keywords

aspirin; cGAS-STING pathway; male infertility; orchitis; particulate matter.

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