Molecular characterization of physis tissue and hormonal profiles of female rats neonatally exposed to low-dose bisphenol A

Physis is a complex cartilaginous structure that is critical for longitudinal bone growth. As one of the endocrine-disrupting chemicals, bisphenol A (BPA) can interfere with the physis by deranging the complex networks of nutritional, cellular, paracrine, and endocrine factors, and this affects longitudinal bone growth, leading to different growth outcomes. However, the exact mechanisms underlying these phenomena remain unclear. Therefore, understanding the molecular pathways involved in the physis after neonatal exposure to low-dose BPA may permit the identification of research targets for therapeutics, which may aid in modulating the process of growth plate closure. In the present study, female Sprague–Dawley rats were exposed to 0.05 mg·kg−1·day−1 of BPA and corn oil vehicle from postnatal day 1 (PND1) to 15 via subcutaneous injection. Next-generation RNA sequencing was performed for the mRNA isolated from the physis. The levels of osteocalcin (OC), growth hormone (GH), and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) were measured on PND30 (BPA0.05mg vs. Vehicle; n = 5 for each group). We observed statistically significant enrichment of gene sets in the BPA0.05mg tissues compared with the Vehicle tissues. Further analysis of the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) identified BPA0.05mg-specific networks of secreted proteins (LEP, NPY, AGT, ACE2, C4B, and C4BPA) as well as those of local matrix and protease proteins (FBN2, LAMC2, ADAMTS16, and ADAMTS19). Furthermore, the levels of OC and GH were affected by BPA exposure. Our results revealed the specific molecular characteristics of physis contaminated with BPA and may provide new clues for physis maturation and supervision of industrial products and occupational exposure.