PFOA and PFOS interact with superoxide dismutase and induce cytotoxicity in mouse primary hepatocytes: A combined cellular and molecular methods

This study investigated the adverse effects of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) on mouse primary hepatocytes by conducting cell viability, apoptosis, intracellular oxidative stress level, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) activity and glutathione level assays. It was shown that PFOA and PFOS altered antioxidant enzymes activities and triggered oxidative stress, and thus exhibited cytotoxicity to the hepatocytes. Molecular mechanisms of SOD activities were measured and structural changes were explored by isothermal titration calorimetry and multiple spectroscopy. PFOA and PFOS bind to SOD via electrostatic forces with 7.634 ± 0.06 and 9.7 ± 0.4 sites, respectively, leading to structural and conformational changes. The overall results demonstrated that PFOS and PFOA are able to interact with SOD directly, resulting in producing oxidative stress and induce apoptosis.