Short-term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis, while long-term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesity

Microplastics (MPs) and antibiotics are pervasive pollutants that may pose a risk to human health. Studies have shown that both MPs and antibiotics adversely affect lipid metabolism and increase the risk of obesity. However, it remains unclear whether combined exposure to these pollutants intensify...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Lirui Hou, Yuhan Fu, Chong Zhao, Lihong Fan, Hongbo Hu, Shutao Yin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-05-01
Series:Environment International
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412025002624
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849313855103041536
author Lirui Hou
Yuhan Fu
Chong Zhao
Lihong Fan
Hongbo Hu
Shutao Yin
author_facet Lirui Hou
Yuhan Fu
Chong Zhao
Lihong Fan
Hongbo Hu
Shutao Yin
author_sort Lirui Hou
collection DOAJ
description Microplastics (MPs) and antibiotics are pervasive pollutants that may pose a risk to human health. Studies have shown that both MPs and antibiotics adversely affect lipid metabolism and increase the risk of obesity. However, it remains unclear whether combined exposure to these pollutants intensify the cumulative detrimental effect on obesity and metabolism. This study demonstrated the impact of exposure to polystyrene MPs (PS, 25 nm) and ciprofloxacin (CIP), both individually and combined, for 30 d and 90 d on the hepatic metabolism of male C57BL/6J mice. The results showed that mice exposed to PS and CIP for either 30 d or 90 d exhibited lipid metabolism disorders such as increased body weight, enlarged adipocytes, triglyceride accumulation in the liver, and higher HDL-C. Differentially expressed hepatic proteins were identified via proteomic analysis. The findings indicated that exposure for 30 d caused abnormal bile acid (BA) secretion in the liver and inhibited the BA secretion pathway, which resulted in intrahepatic cholestasis. Furthermore, exposure for 90 d resolved cholestasis and reduced the overall number of differentially expressed proteins. Intestinal pathology revealed more severe damage after exposure for 30 d, while 90 d exposure decreased the adverse effect. Combined CIP and PS exposure caused damage to the organism. However, the adaptive capacity of the organism during prolonged exposure mitigated the damage caused by both, but did not imply the complete eradication of adverse effects. This study found that 90 d exposure to PS and CIP resulted in weight gain, possibly due to changes in the gut flora and suppressed energy metabolism. These results indicated that simultaneous exposure to CIP and PS exacerbated the adverse impact on the liver, causing short-term intrahepatic cholestasis. Prolonged exposure reduced the energy metabolism in the body, exhibiting varied toxicity outcomes and mechanisms at different exposure durations. This study offers novel insights into the effect of MPs and antibiotic CIP exposure on metabolic abnormalities and provides a scientific basis for assessing these risks. It also emphasizes that the adverse effect resulting from 30 d (short-term) toxic exposure may not persist and that long-term chronic toxicity needs warrants.
format Article
id doaj-art-fa3569592f444f348e0bf39ed3c0f29b
institution Kabale University
issn 0160-4120
language English
publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher Elsevier
record_format Article
series Environment International
spelling doaj-art-fa3569592f444f348e0bf39ed3c0f29b2025-08-20T03:52:38ZengElsevierEnvironment International0160-41202025-05-0119910951110.1016/j.envint.2025.109511Short-term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis, while long-term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesityLirui Hou0Yuhan Fu1Chong Zhao2Lihong Fan3Hongbo Hu4Shutao Yin5Department of Nutrition and Health, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, 17 Qinghua East Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, ChinaDepartment of Nutrition and Health, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, 17 Qinghua East Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, ChinaDepartment of Nutrition and Health, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, 17 Qinghua East Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, ChinaCollege of Veterinary Medicine, China Agricultural University, Yunamingyuan West Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100193, ChinaDepartment of Nutrition and Health, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, 17 Qinghua East Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, ChinaDepartment of Nutrition and Health, College of Food Science and Nutritional Engineering, China Agricultural University, 17 Qinghua East Road, Haidian District, Beijing 100083, China; Corresponding author.Microplastics (MPs) and antibiotics are pervasive pollutants that may pose a risk to human health. Studies have shown that both MPs and antibiotics adversely affect lipid metabolism and increase the risk of obesity. However, it remains unclear whether combined exposure to these pollutants intensify the cumulative detrimental effect on obesity and metabolism. This study demonstrated the impact of exposure to polystyrene MPs (PS, 25 nm) and ciprofloxacin (CIP), both individually and combined, for 30 d and 90 d on the hepatic metabolism of male C57BL/6J mice. The results showed that mice exposed to PS and CIP for either 30 d or 90 d exhibited lipid metabolism disorders such as increased body weight, enlarged adipocytes, triglyceride accumulation in the liver, and higher HDL-C. Differentially expressed hepatic proteins were identified via proteomic analysis. The findings indicated that exposure for 30 d caused abnormal bile acid (BA) secretion in the liver and inhibited the BA secretion pathway, which resulted in intrahepatic cholestasis. Furthermore, exposure for 90 d resolved cholestasis and reduced the overall number of differentially expressed proteins. Intestinal pathology revealed more severe damage after exposure for 30 d, while 90 d exposure decreased the adverse effect. Combined CIP and PS exposure caused damage to the organism. However, the adaptive capacity of the organism during prolonged exposure mitigated the damage caused by both, but did not imply the complete eradication of adverse effects. This study found that 90 d exposure to PS and CIP resulted in weight gain, possibly due to changes in the gut flora and suppressed energy metabolism. These results indicated that simultaneous exposure to CIP and PS exacerbated the adverse impact on the liver, causing short-term intrahepatic cholestasis. Prolonged exposure reduced the energy metabolism in the body, exhibiting varied toxicity outcomes and mechanisms at different exposure durations. This study offers novel insights into the effect of MPs and antibiotic CIP exposure on metabolic abnormalities and provides a scientific basis for assessing these risks. It also emphasizes that the adverse effect resulting from 30 d (short-term) toxic exposure may not persist and that long-term chronic toxicity needs warrants.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412025002624CiprofloxacinMicroplasticsCombination toxicityHepatotoxicityObesity
spellingShingle Lirui Hou
Yuhan Fu
Chong Zhao
Lihong Fan
Hongbo Hu
Shutao Yin
Short-term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis, while long-term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesity
Environment International
Ciprofloxacin
Microplastics
Combination toxicity
Hepatotoxicity
Obesity
title Short-term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis, while long-term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesity
title_full Short-term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis, while long-term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesity
title_fullStr Short-term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis, while long-term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesity
title_full_unstemmed Short-term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis, while long-term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesity
title_short Short-term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis, while long-term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesity
title_sort short term exposure to ciprofloxacin and microplastic leads to intrahepatic cholestasis while long term exposure decreases energy metabolism and increases the risk of obesity
topic Ciprofloxacin
Microplastics
Combination toxicity
Hepatotoxicity
Obesity
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0160412025002624
work_keys_str_mv AT liruihou shorttermexposuretociprofloxacinandmicroplasticleadstointrahepaticcholestasiswhilelongtermexposuredecreasesenergymetabolismandincreasestheriskofobesity
AT yuhanfu shorttermexposuretociprofloxacinandmicroplasticleadstointrahepaticcholestasiswhilelongtermexposuredecreasesenergymetabolismandincreasestheriskofobesity
AT chongzhao shorttermexposuretociprofloxacinandmicroplasticleadstointrahepaticcholestasiswhilelongtermexposuredecreasesenergymetabolismandincreasestheriskofobesity
AT lihongfan shorttermexposuretociprofloxacinandmicroplasticleadstointrahepaticcholestasiswhilelongtermexposuredecreasesenergymetabolismandincreasestheriskofobesity
AT hongbohu shorttermexposuretociprofloxacinandmicroplasticleadstointrahepaticcholestasiswhilelongtermexposuredecreasesenergymetabolismandincreasestheriskofobesity
AT shutaoyin shorttermexposuretociprofloxacinandmicroplasticleadstointrahepaticcholestasiswhilelongtermexposuredecreasesenergymetabolismandincreasestheriskofobesity