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Updated: Feb 7, 2026
Tuning the Acidity of Pt/ CNTs Catalysts for Hydrodeoxygenation of Diphenyl Ether
Published on: August 17, 2019
Structure-Dependent Activity of Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers and Their Hydroxylated Metabolites on Estrogen Related
Lin-Ying Cao1,2, Ziye Zheng3, Xiao-Min Ren1
1State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Eco-toxicology, Research Center for Eco-environmental Sciences , Chinese Academy of Sciences , 18 Shuangqing Road , P.O. Box 2871, Beijing 100085 , China.
Abstract:
Estrogen-related receptor γ (ERRγ) is an orphan nuclear receptor having functional cross-talk with classical estrogen receptors. Here, we investigated whether ERRγ is a potential target of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and their hydroxylated metabolites (OH-PBDEs). By using a fluorescence competitive binding method established in our laboratory, the binding potencies of 30 PBDEs/OH-PBDEs with ERRγ were determined for the first time. All of the tested OH-PBDEs and some PBDEs bound to ERRγ with Kd values ranging from 0.13-13.61 μM. The OH-PBDEs showed much higher binding potency than their parent PBDEs. A quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) model was developed to analyze the chemical binding potencies in relation to their structural and chemical characteristics. The QSAR model indicated that the molecular size, relative ratios of aromatic atoms, and hydrogen bond donors and acceptors were crucial factors for PBDEs/OH-PBDEs binding. By using a reporter gene assay, we found that most of the low-brominated PBDEs/OH-PBDEs exerted agonistic activity toward ERRγ, while high-brominated PBDEs/OH-PBDEs had no effect on the basal ERRγ activity. The docking results showed that the low-brominated PBDEs/OH-PBDEs tended to take an agonistic binding mode while the high-brominated ones tended to take an antagonistic binding mode. Overall, our results suggest ERRγ to be a potential novel target for PBDEs/OH-PBDEs.
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