Folic Acid Alleviates X‐Ray Irradiation‐Induced Jaw Malformation in Zebrafish

ABSTRACT

X‐rays are a form of ionizing radiation that has sufficient energy to remove electrons from atoms, thereby creating potentially harmful ions. X‐ray irradiation during organogenesis can have profound detrimental effects, depending on the developmental stage and irradiating energy. In this study, we examined the impact of X‐ray irradiation on zebrafish development at 36 h post‐fertilization and observed marked jaw malformation, which was alleviated by folic acid pretreatment. Mechanistic studies revealed that folic acid pretreatment suppressed irradiation‐induced production of reactive oxygen species. Transcriptome analysis performed at 24 and 48 h post‐irradiation revealed dysregulated expression of apolipoprotein A‐IV a ( apoa4a ), methionine adenosyltransferase 1A ( mat1a ), heat shock protein 90 alpha class A member 1 tandem duplicate 1 ( hsp90aa1.1 ), FKBP prolyl isomerase 5 ( fkbp5 ), plac8 onzin related protein 3 ( ponzr3 ), and prostaglandin E synthase 3a ( ptges3a ), which was not observed in zebrafish treated with folic acid before the irradiation. These findings suggest that folic acid alleviates X‐ray irradiation‐induced jaw malformation in zebrafish, at least in part, by reducing oxidative stress and ameliorating dysregulated gene expression.