Cadmium is a significant environmental pollutant that poses a substantial health hazard to humans due to its propensity to accumulate in the body and resist excretion. We have a comprehensive understanding of the damage caused by Cd exposure and the mechanisms of tolerance, however, the intricate mechanisms underlying multigenerational effects resulting from Cd exposure remain poorly understood. In this study, Caenorhabditis elegans were used as a model organism to investigate Cd-induced multigenerational effects and its association with epigenetic modifications. The results showed that Cd exposure leads to an increase in germ cell apoptosis and a decrease in fertility, which can be passed down to subsequent generations. Further analysis revealed that transcription factors DAF-16/FOXO and SKN-1/Nrf2 play essential roles in responding to Cd exposure and in the transgenerational induction of germ cell apoptosis. Additionally, histone H3K4 trimethylation (H3K4me3) marks stress-responsive genes and enhances their transcription, ultimately triggering multigenerational germ cell apoptosis. This study provides compelling evidence that the detrimental effects of Cd on the reproductive system can be inherited across generations. These findings enhance our understanding of the multigenerational effects of environmental pollutants and may inform strategies for the prevention and control of such pollutants.

中文翻译：

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镉暴露诱导秀丽隐杆线虫生殖细胞凋亡和生育力抑制的多代遗传


镉是一种重要的环境污染物，由于其易于在体内积累并阻碍排泄，对人类健康造成重大危害。我们对镉暴露造成的损害和耐受机制有了全面的了解，但对镉暴露引起的多代效应的复杂机制仍知之甚少。在这项研究中，以秀丽隐杆线虫为模型生物，研究镉诱导的多代效应及其与表观遗传修饰的关系。结果表明，镉暴露会导致生殖细胞凋亡增加和生育能力下降，并可遗传给后代。进一步分析表明，转录因子 DAF-16/FOXO 和 SKN-1/Nrf2 在响应 Cd 暴露和生殖细胞凋亡的跨代诱导中发挥重要作用。此外，组蛋白 H3K4 三甲基化 (H3K4me3) 标记应激反应基因并增强其转录，最终引发多代生殖细胞凋亡。这项研究提供了令人信服的证据，证明镉对生殖系统的有害影响可以代代相传。这些发现增强了我们对环境污染物的多代影响的理解，并可能为预防和控制此类污染物的策略提供信息。