Zhao Ju1, Jianlin Shao2, Meiling Zhou1, Jing Jin1, Huiji Pan1, Ping Ding1, Ruixue Huang3. 1. Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Xiangya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China. 2. Zhejiang Provincial Center for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention and Control, Zhejiang Hospital, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. 3. Department of Occupational and Environmental Health, Xiangya School of Public Health, Central South University, Changsha, 410078, Hunan, China. huangruixue@csu.edu.cn.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Silica exposure underlies the development of silicosis, one of the most serious occupational hazards worldwide. We aimed to explore the interaction of the silica-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related transcripts with the cellular metabolism regulated by p53. METHODS: We knocked out p53 using CRISPR/Cas9 in the human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cell line. The transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses and integrative omics were conducted using microarrays, GC-MS, and MetaboAnalyst, respectively. RESULTS: Fifty-two mRNAs showed significantly altered expression in the HBE p53-KO cells post-silica exposure. A total of 42 metabolites were putatively involved in p53-dependent silica-mediated HBE cell dysfunction. Through integrated data analysis, we obtained five significant p53-dependent metabolic pathways including phenylalanine, glyoxylate, dicarboxylate, and linoleic acid metabolism, and the citrate cycle. Through metabolite screening, we further identified that benzeneacetic acid, a key regulation metabolite in the phenylalanine metabolic pathway, attenuated the silica-induced EMT in HBE cells in a p53-dependent manner. Interestingly, despite the extensive p53-related published literature, the clinical translation of these studies remains unsubstantial. CONCLUSIONS: Our study offers new insights into the molecular mechanisms by which epithelial cells respond to silica exposure and provide fresh perspective and direction for future clinical biomarker research and potential clinically sustainable and translatable role of p53.
BACKGROUND:Silica exposure underlies the development of silicosis, one of the most serious occupational hazards worldwide. We aimed to explore the interaction of the silica-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT)-related transcripts with the cellular metabolism regulated by p53. METHODS: We knocked out p53 using CRISPR/Cas9 in the human bronchial epithelial (HBE) cell line. The transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses and integrative omics were conducted using microarrays, GC-MS, and MetaboAnalyst, respectively. RESULTS: Fifty-two mRNAs showed significantly altered expression in the HBEp53-KO cells post-silica exposure. A total of 42 metabolites were putatively involved in p53-dependent silica-mediated HBE cell dysfunction. Through integrated data analysis, we obtained five significant p53-dependent metabolic pathways including phenylalanine, glyoxylate, dicarboxylate, and linoleic acid metabolism, and the citrate cycle. Through metabolite screening, we further identified that benzeneacetic acid, a key regulation metabolite in the phenylalanine metabolic pathway, attenuated the silica-induced EMT in HBE cells in a p53-dependent manner. Interestingly, despite the extensive p53-related published literature, the clinical translation of these studies remains unsubstantial. CONCLUSIONS: Our study offers new insights into the molecular mechanisms by which epithelial cells respond to silica exposure and provide fresh perspective and direction for future clinical biomarker research and potential clinically sustainable and translatable role of p53.