Effect of endocrine disrupting compounds present in food on the enzymatic activity of methionine synthase in neuronal cells

Abstract

Abstract EDCs can target the nuclear hormone receptors (NHR) leading to changes in the reduced/oxidized ratio of metabolites related to the methionine synthase (MS) activity. As a result, DNA methylation patterns are altered, and epigenetic changes may take place. This mechanism proposal has been named as redox DNA methylation (RDM). In the present work, in vitro neuron cell cultures were exposed to the two most common varieties of EDCs reported in food: phthalates and bisphenol A (BPA). As a result, enzymatic activity of MS was reduced up to 3-fold in comparison to cultures that were not exposed to EDCs. Our results demonstrate that some endocrine disrupting compounds in food can significantly reduce the enzymatic activity of methionine synthase in neurons leading to possible epigenetic changes associated to neurocognitive conditions.