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State-of-the-Art Environmental Chemical Exposomics and Metabolomics—2nd Edition
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State-of-the-Art Environmental Chemical Exposomics and Metabolomics—2nd Edition

A special issue of Toxics (ISSN 2305-6304). This special issue belongs to the section "Exposome Analysis and Risk Assessment".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 25 November 2025 | Viewed by 4563

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. Minjian Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. State Key Laboratory of Reproductive Medicine, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 211166, China
2. Key Laboratory of Modern Toxicology of Ministry of Education, School of Public Health, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 211166, China
Interests: metabolomics; exposomics; reproductive and developmental health; exposure science; toxicology
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The world's environmental problems are becoming increasingly prominent, and their impacts on human health have attracted widespread attention. Since human exposure is mixed and complex, people are increasingly interested in understanding the relationships between environmental exposures and human health from a broader perspective. This has led to the concept of chemical exposome to comprehensively evaluate chemical exposures and their risks. For the high-throughput detection of endogenous chemicals, metabolomics systematically detects endogenous small-molecule substrates, intermediates, and products of cell metabolism, which are considered to be closest to the phenotype and provide important information for understanding physiological and pathological processes, and its application in toxicology has great significance. Integrating environmental chemical exposomics and metabolomics provides important information for the screening out of key chemicals leading to impaired outcomes and their toxic metabolic signatures so that the potentially toxic effects of these chemical exposures and underlying mechanisms can be elucidated. In Volume I, we published papers regarding the development of new methods of chemical-exposome-related detection and applications of metabolomics and its integration with information from exposomics as well as other omics and different biological layers in the toxicological area, advancing our understanding of this topic. This Special Issue focuses on the exposomics of toxic chemicals and materials and metabolomics of endogenous metabolites, and original research articles, communications, and reviews in this area are welcome to be submitted.

Prof. Dr. Minjian Chen
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • exposomics
  • metabolomics
  • exposome
  • exposure
  • metabolome
  • metabolism
  • health
  • toxicity

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Related Special Issue

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 2056 KiB  
Article
Exploring the Role of Bifenthrin in Recurrent Implantation Failure and Pregnancy Loss Through Network Toxicology and Molecular Docking
by Shengyuan Jiang, Yixiao Wang, Haiyan Chen, Yuanyuan Teng, Qiaoying Zhu and Kaipeng Xie
Toxics 2025, 13(6), 454; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13060454 - 29 May 2025
Viewed by 213
Abstract
Bifenthrin (BF) is a widely used pyrethroid pesticide recognized as an endocrine-disrupting chemical (EDC). Previous studies have confirmed that chronic exposure to BF is associated with various health risks. However, its potential association with recurrent implantation failure (RIF) and recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) [...] Read more.
Bifenthrin (BF) is a widely used pyrethroid pesticide recognized as an endocrine-disrupting chemical (EDC). Previous studies have confirmed that chronic exposure to BF is associated with various health risks. However, its potential association with recurrent implantation failure (RIF) and recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) remains unclear. In this study, the potential targets of BF were identified using several databases, including the Comparative Toxicogenomics Database (CTD), TargetNet, GeneCards, SwissTargetPrediction, and STITCH. Differentially expressed genes (DEGs) associated with RIF were obtained from bulk RNA-seq datasets in the GEO database. Candidate targets were identified by intersecting the predicted BF-related targets with the RIF-associated DEGs, followed by functional enrichment analysis using the DAVID and g:Profiler platforms. Subsequently, hub genes were identified based on the STRING database and Cytoscape. A diagnostic model was then constructed based on these hub genes in the RIF cohort and validated in an independent recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) cohort. Additionally, we performed single-cell type distribution analysis and immune infiltration profiling based on single-cell RNA-seq and bulk RNA-seq data, respectively. Molecular docking analysis using AutoDock Vina was conducted to evaluate the binding affinity between BF and the four hub proteins, as well as several hormone-related receptors. Functional enrichment results indicated that the candidate genes were mainly involved in apoptotic and oxidative stress-related pathways. Ultimately, four hub genes—BCL2, HMOX1, CYCS, and PTGS2—were identified. The diagnostic model based on these genes exhibited good predictive performance in the RIF cohort and was successfully validated in the RPL cohort. Single-cell transcriptomic analysis revealed a significant increase in the proportion of myeloid cells in RPL patients, while immune infiltration analysis showed a consistent downregulation of M2 macrophages in both RIF and RPL. Moreover, molecular docking analysis revealed that BF exhibited high binding affinity to all four hub proteins and demonstrated strong binding potential with multiple hormone receptors, particularly pregnane X receptor (PXR), estrogen receptor α (ESRα), and thyroid hormone receptors (TR). In conclusion, the association of BF with four hub genes and multiple hormone receptors suggests a potential link to immune and endocrine dysregulation observed in RIF and RPL. However, in vivo and in vitro experimental evidence is currently lacking, and further studies are needed to elucidate the mechanisms by which BF may contribute to RIF and RPL. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue State-of-the-Art Environmental Chemical Exposomics and Metabolomics—2nd Edition)
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16 pages, 1416 KiB  
Article
Association of Personal Care and Consumer Product Chemicals with Long-Term Amenorrhea: Insights into Serum Globulin and STAT3
by Ziyi Li, Xue Song, Daniel Abdul Karim Turay, Yanling Chen, Guohong Zhao, Yingtong Jiang, Kun Zhou, Xiaoming Ji, Xiaoling Zhang and Minjian Chen
Toxics 2025, 13(3), 187; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13030187 - 5 Mar 2025
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Abstract
Chemicals in personal care and consumer products are suspected to disrupt endocrine function and affect reproductive health. However, the link between mixed exposure and long-term amenorrhea is not well understood. This study analyzed data from 684 women (2013–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination [...] Read more.
Chemicals in personal care and consumer products are suspected to disrupt endocrine function and affect reproductive health. However, the link between mixed exposure and long-term amenorrhea is not well understood. This study analyzed data from 684 women (2013–2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey) to assess exposure to eight polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFASs), 15 phthalates (PAEs), six phenols, and four parabens. Various statistical models for robustness tests and mediation analysis were used to explore associations with long-term amenorrhea and the role of serum globulin. Biological mechanisms were identified through an integrated strategy involving target analysis of key chemicals and long-term amenorrhea intersections, pathway analysis, and target validation. Results showed that women with long-term amenorrhea had higher exposure levels of Perfluorodecanoic acid, Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (PFHxS), Perfluorononanoic acid, n-perfluorooctanoic acid (n_PFOA), n-perfluorooctane sulfonic acid, and Perfluoromethylheptane sulfonic acid isomers. Logistic regression with different adjustments consistently found significant associations between elevated PFAS concentrations and increased long-term amenorrhea risk, confirmed by Partial Least Squares Discriminant Analysis. Mediation analysis revealed that serum globulin partially mediated the relationship between PFAS exposure and long-term amenorrhea. Network and target analysis suggested that PFHxS and n_PFOA may interact with Signal Transducer and Activator of Transcription 3 (STAT3). This study highlights significant associations between PFAS exposure, particularly PFHxS and n_PFOA, and long-term amenorrhea, with serum globulin and STAT3 serving as mediators in the underlying mechanisms. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue State-of-the-Art Environmental Chemical Exposomics and Metabolomics—2nd Edition)
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14 pages, 3905 KiB  
Article
Acrylamide Induces Antiapoptotic Autophagy and Apoptosis by Activating PERK Pathway in SH-SY5Y Cells
by Yiqi Wang, Ying Liu, Xing Zhang, Yang Jiao, Lian Duan, Ruijie Cheng, Ning Yang and Hong Yan
Toxics 2025, 13(1), 41; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics13010041 - 7 Jan 2025
Viewed by 841
Abstract
Acrylamide (ACR) is a commonly used organic compound that exhibits evident neurotoxicity in humans. Our previous studies showed that the mechanisms of ACR-caused neurotoxicity included apoptosis, PERK-mediated endoplasmic reticulum stress, and autophagy, but the relationships among them were still unclear. This paper investigated [...] Read more.
Acrylamide (ACR) is a commonly used organic compound that exhibits evident neurotoxicity in humans. Our previous studies showed that the mechanisms of ACR-caused neurotoxicity included apoptosis, PERK-mediated endoplasmic reticulum stress, and autophagy, but the relationships among them were still unclear. This paper investigated the relationships among apoptosis, autophagy, and the PERK pathway to demonstrate the mechanism of ACR neurotoxicity further. Different doses of ACR were set to value ACR toxicity. Then, a PERK inhibitor and autophagy inhibitor, GSK2606414 and 3-methyladenine (3-MA), were used separately to inhibit the PERK pathway and autophagy activation in SH-SY5Y cells under ACR treatment. With the increase of ACR dose, the apoptotic rate increased in a dose-dependent manner. After the inhibition of the PERK pathway, the activated apoptosis and autophagosome accumulation caused by ACR were alleviated. Under 3-MA and ACR treatment, the autophagy inhibition deteriorated apoptosis in SH-SY5Y cells but had no significant effect on ACR-induced PERK pathway activation; thus, PERK pathway-induced autophagy had an antiapoptotic role in this condition. This paper provides an experimental basis for exploring potential molecular targets to prevent and control ACR toxicity. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue State-of-the-Art Environmental Chemical Exposomics and Metabolomics—2nd Edition)
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15 pages, 6121 KiB  
Article
Network Toxicology and Molecular Docking Analysis of Tetracycline-Induced Acute Pancreatitis: Unveiling Core Mechanisms and Targets
by Hang Lei, Yimao Wu, Wenjun Ma, Jiaqi Yao, Pengcheng Zhang, Yong Tian, Yuhong Jiang, Zhijun Xie, Lv Zhu and Wenfu Tang
Toxics 2024, 12(12), 929; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics12120929 - 21 Dec 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1911
Abstract
Acute pancreatitis (AP), induced by tetracycline, a widely used antibiotic, poses significant clinical and toxicological challenges, yet its molecular mechanisms remain unclear. This study aims to promote drug toxicology strategies for the effective investigation of the putative toxicity and potential molecular mechanisms of [...] Read more.
Acute pancreatitis (AP), induced by tetracycline, a widely used antibiotic, poses significant clinical and toxicological challenges, yet its molecular mechanisms remain unclear. This study aims to promote drug toxicology strategies for the effective investigation of the putative toxicity and potential molecular mechanisms of antibiotic drugs through the study of tetracycline in AP. Using the SwissTargetPrediction, SEA Search, Super-PRED, GeneCards, Drugbank, Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM), and Therapeutic Target Database (TTD), we identified 259 potential targets associated with tetracycline exposure and AP. Further refinement via the STRING database and Cytoscape (version 3.10.1) software highlighted 22 core targets, including TP53, TNF, and AKT1. Functional enrichment via the Database for Annotation, Visualization, and Integrated Discovery (DAVID) identified pathways through Gene Ontology (GO) terms and the Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) database, highlighting PI3K-Akt, MAPK, HIF-1, and AGE-RAGE as critical mediators in tetracycline-induced AP. Molecular docking confirmed the strong binding between tetracycline and the core targets. Overall, these findings suggest that tetracycline may affect the occurrence and progression of pancreas-related inflammation by regulating pancreatic cell apoptosis and proliferation, activating inflammatory signaling pathways, and regulating lipid metabolic pathways. This study provides a theoretical basis for understanding the molecular mechanism of tetracycline-induced AP and lays the foundation for the prevention and treatment of digestive system diseases associated with excessive exposure to tetracycline antibiotics and certain tetracyclines. In addition, our network toxicology approach has accelerated the elucidation of toxic pathways in antibiotic drugs that lack specific characteristics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue State-of-the-Art Environmental Chemical Exposomics and Metabolomics—2nd Edition)
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