Toxic effects of HT-2 toxin on mouse oocytes and its possible mechanisms

T-2 toxin is one of the type A trichothecene mycotoxins that is considered to be the most toxic of the trichothecenes. T-2 toxin has been shown to exert various toxic effects in farm animals and humans, as it induces lesions in the brain and in lymphoid, hematopoietic, and gastrointestinal tissues. HT-2 toxin is the major metabolite of T-2 toxin. There is little information regarding the effects of HT-2 toxin on the female reproductive system, particularly oocyte maturation. Thus, in this study, we investigated the toxic effects of HT-2 on mouse oocyte maturation and its possible mechanisms of action. HT-2 toxin exposure disrupted oocyte maturation, reduced actin expression in both the oocyte cortex and cytoplasm, and disrupted meiotic spindle morphology by reducing p-MAPK protein level. HT-2 toxin exposure also induced oxidative stress and resulted in oocyte apoptosis, as shown by ROS accumulation, increased SOD mRNA level, and the expression of the early apoptosis marker Annexin V and increased caspase-3 and bax mRNA levels. Additionally, HT-2 toxin exposure increased LC3 and ATG12 protein levels and lc3 and atg14 mRNA levels, which indicated that HT-2 toxin induced autophagy in mouse oocytes. We also examined for possible epigenetic modifications. Fluorescence intensity analysis showed that 5mC level increased after HT-2 toxin exposure, whereas H3K9me2 and H3K27me3 levels decreased after HT-2 toxin exposure, which indicated that DNA and histone methylations were altered. Thus, our results indicated that HT-2 toxin exposure reduced mouse oocyte maturation capability by affecting cytoskeletal dynamics, apoptosis/autophagy, oxidative stress, and epigenetic modifications.