Biological effects and mechanism of RAW246.7 cells exposed to U(VI)

In this study, biological effects and mechanisms of hexavalent uranium (U(VI)) damage on immune cells RAW264.7 were investigated by biological experiments and transcriptome analysis. Cell viability, cell cycle, colony formation, and transcriptomes of RAW264.7 were examined after 24 h exposure to U(VI). The results showed a marked decrease in viability and arrest of the G2/M phase after U(VI) treatment, and 1092 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were up-regulated and 1127 DEGs were down-regulated relative to the control group. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) data revealed that DEGs were primarily involved in the transcriptional dysregulation of the NF-κB and MAPK signaling pathway, etc The Gene Ontology (GO) classification revealed that DEGs were mainly enriched in cellular components, molecular functions, and biological processes. The trends of four DEGs assayed by Western Blotting (WB) were consistent with that of the RNA-seq. These findings will establish a theoretical foundation for future research into the immune system toxicity of U(VI).