Transcriptomic evidence suggesting a Trojan horse‐like synergistic effect in exposures to nanoplastics and benzo[a]pyrene on a yellowfin sea bream muscle derived cell line

In this study, a new cell line named yellowfin sea bream muscle (YSBM) was successfully established by using muscle tissue from yellowfin seabream, Acanthopagrus latus, a widespread saline fish cultivated in China. The YSBM cell line was subcultured more than 100 passages and appeared to be suitable for researching gene functions in vitro, as it was able to be transfected successfully with pEGFP-N3 plasmid. Additionally, YSBM cells were found to be susceptible to red-spotted grouper nervous necrosis virus (RGNNV), suggesting that this cell line can be a valuable resource for fish virology research. Further, YSBM cells were employed in environmental pollutant exposure experiments to investigate the mechanisms of damage caused by these pollutants to muscle tissue of aquatic organisms. We exposed YSBM cells to nanoplastics (NPs), benzo[a]pyrene (BaP) and a mixture of both, and performed transcriptome analysis on the samples. Our transcriptome analyses revealed discernible variations in the effects on the cells between the groups where BaP and NPs were processed separately. Interestingly, joint treatment with the two pollutants resulted in a synergistic toxicity, an effect reminiscent of the hypothesized 'Trojan horse' mechanism, where the mixture of BaP and NPs demonstrated mutually augmenting toxicities on aquatic organisms. Overall, our results suggest that the YSBM cell line could be a valuable tool in aquatic environmental pollution toxicological analysis. It is particularly useful for evaluating the effects of environmental pollutants on fish and their potential impact on humans via the food chain. A graphical abstract is provided to illustrate the methodology and key findings of this study. Thus, our study sheds new light on the potential risks of environmental contaminants and illustrates the usefulness of YSBM cells for environmental toxicology research.