Modulation of selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidase by perfluorodecanoic acid in rats: effect of dietary selenium

Forty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats fed a diet containing 0.4, 0.2 or 1.0 mg of selenium (Se)/kg of diet were injected with a single dose (35 mg/kg) of perfluorodecanoic acid (PFDA) in corn oil and killed 2 wk later. Control animals were pair-fed and treated with an equal volume of vehicle. PFDA treatment significantly increased Se-dependent glutathione peroxidase (Se-GSHPx) activity in liver cytosol of rats fed the 0.04 mg of Se/kg of diet but not in rats fed the other diets. The increase in liver cytosolic Se-GSHPx activity in rats fed 0.04 mg of Se/kg of diet paralleled increases in Se content and serum Se-GSHPx activity. Determination of Se-GSHPx by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay showed that PFDA caused a decrease in Se-GSHPx protein in rats fed 0.2 or 1.0 mg of Se/kg of diet but not in rats fed 0.04 mg of Se/kg of diet. Further analysis revealed that the ratio of Se-GSHPx activity to antibody-reactive protein was increased by PFDA in all three groups. The in vitro addition of PFDA directly to the assay mixture for Se-GSHPx activity did not produce any effect. Reduced glutathione was significantly increased by PFDA treatment in all three groups. These data show that PFDA affects the Se content, Se-GSHPx activity and Se-GSHPx protein in rat liver and that the effect is dependent on the dietary/hepatic Se level.