Oxidative stress and lipid peroxidation with exposure of emerging disinfection byproduct 2,6-dichlorobenzoquinone in mice

2,6-dichlorobenzoquinone (2,6-DCBQ) is an emerging disinfection byproduct frequently detected in drinking water. Previous studies have indicated that 2,6-DCBQ causes oxidative stress damage in some live systems, but this has yet to be tested in vivo in mammals. In the present study, adult mice were exposed to 2,6-DCBQ for 30 d via gavage at 0 ~ 100 mg kg − 1 with the responses of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase [SOD] and catalase [CAT]), key oxidative stress response genes (Heme oxygenase-1 [HO-1], NADPH quinone oxidoreductase 1 [NQO1] and glutamate-L-cysteine ligase catalytic subunit [GCLC]) in the Nrf2-keap1 pathway, and lipid peroxidation (malonaldehyde, MDA) as an indicator of oxidative damage being measured. Our results indicated that 2,6-DCBQ decreased the activities of SOD and CAT, repressed transcription of key genes in the Nrf2-keap1 pathway, and caused measurable oxidative damage. These results reveal the impact of 2,6-DCBQ in a model mammalian system and are key to understanding the potential impacts of 2,6-DCBQ in humans.