Environmentally relevant perinatal exposure to DBP accelerated spermatogenesis by promoting the glycolipid metabolism of Sertoli cells in male mice

Since Sertoli cells (SCs) play an important role in providing energy for spermatogenesis, the present study was aimed to investigate the effects of maternal exposure to plasticizer Dibutyl phthalate (DBP) on onset of spermatogenesis in male offspring through metabolism pathway as well as the underlying molecular mechanism. By detecting the level of the glucose metabolism in SCs, we found that monobutyl phthalate (MBP, the active metabolite of DBP) promoted cellular glycolysis accompanied by GLUT1, GLUT3, LDHA and MCT4 upregulated, leading to increased lactate which was provided spermatogenesis as energy substrate. Further mechanism research revealed that DBP/MBP increased fatty acid uptake and ATP production by promoting the expression of CD36, so as to accelerate their own maturity. Therefore, our findings provided new perspective at glycolipid metabolism to explain prenatal DBP exposure leading to earlier onset of spermatogenesis in male offspring mice.