miRNAs: A potentially valuable tool in pesticide toxicology assessment-current experimental and epidemiological data review.

miRNAs are responsible for the regulation of many cellular processes such as development, cell differentiation, proliferation, apoptosis, and tumor growth. Several studies showed that they can also serve as specific, stable, and sensitive markers of chemical exposure. In this review, current experimental and epidemiological data evidencing deregulation in miRNA expression in response to fungicides, insecticides or herbicides were analyzed.

Effect of perfluorohexane sulfonate on pig oocyte maturation, gap-junctional intercellular communication, mitochondrial membrane potential and DNA damage in cumulus cells in vitro.

Perfluorohexane sulfonate (PFHxS) is one of the most abundant perfluorinated compounds in the environment. Exposure to this compound has been correlated to a decrease in human fertility, although the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying this correlation have not been described. The adverse reproductive effects of PFHxS could be based on alterations in oocyte maturation, the process rendering oocytes competent for fertilization.