Altered gene expression linked to germline dysfunction following exposure of Caenorhabditis elegans to DEET

• DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.108699
• Publication Date: 2024-01-04T15:38:18Z
• Authors: Nara Shin; Laura I. Lascarez...; Ayana L. Henderson; Marina Martínez-G...; Rajendiran Karthi...; Victor Barrera; Shannan Ho Sui; Kurunthachalam Ka...; Mónica P. Colaiácovo
• Keywords: DEET

N,N-diethyl-meta-toluamide (DEET) is a commonly used synthetic insect repellent. Although the neurological effects of DEET have been widely investigated, its on germline are less understood. Here, we show that exposure nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, which highly predictive mammalian reprotoxicity, resulting in internal levels within range detected human biological samples, causes activation p53/CEP-1-dependent germ cell apoptosis, altered meiotic recombination, chromosome abnormalities, and missegregation. RNA-sequencing analysis links DEET-induced alterations expression genes related to redox processes chromatin structure reduced mitochondrial function, impaired DNA double-strand break repair progression, defects during early embryogenesis. We propose elegans interferes with gene expression, leading increased oxidative stress structure, pose risk reproductive health.