Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) is known as an environmental endocrine disruptor and has developmental neurotoxicity that could be associated with behavior changes in human and animal studies. Previous studies have shown that PFOA might affect the dopaminergic nervous system. However, the mode of action underlying the effects of PFOA remains poorly understood. Our study used zebrafish as an animal model to investigate the effects of early-life PFOA exposure on dopaminergic neuron development and dopamine functions in zebrafish larvae. Zebrafish fertilized eggs were exposed to different concentrations of PFOA (0, 10, 100, 1000 μg/L). After exposure to PFOA for 7 days, the locomotor activity of zebrafish was decreased; the mRNA levels of nuclear receptor subfamily 4 group a member 2b (nr4a2b), paired box 2 and 5 (pax2, pax5), tyrosine hydroxylase 1/2 (th1/th2) and dopamine transporter (dat) were increased; mRNA and protein level of mesencephalic astrocyte-derived neurotrophic factor (manf) were decreased. Neural cell proliferation in the preoptic area of hypothalamus was increased. In conclusion, dopaminergic neuron development might be one of the targets of early-life PFOA exposure. The neurobehavior changes induced by PFOA exposure might link to multiple aspects of dopaminergic neuron development and dopamine functions in zebrafish larvae.

全氟辛酸 (PFOA) 被称为环境内分泌干扰物，具有发育神经毒性，可能与人类和动物研究中的行为改变有关。先前的研究表明，全氟辛酸可能会影响多巴胺能神经系统。然而，全氟辛酸影响的潜在作用方式仍然知之甚少。我们的研究使用斑马鱼作为动物模型，研究生命早期 PFOA 暴露对斑马鱼幼虫多巴胺能神经元发育和多巴胺功能的影响。斑马鱼受精卵暴露于不同浓度的全氟辛酸（0、10、100、1000 微克/升）。接触PFOA 7天后，斑马鱼的运动能力下降；核受体亚家族 4 的 mRNA 水平组 a 成员 2b ( nr4a2b )，配对框 2 和 5 (pax2、pax5 )、酪氨酸羟化酶 1/2 ( th1 / th2 ) 和多巴胺转运蛋白 ( dat ) 增加；中脑星形胶质细胞源性神经营养因子 ( manf ) 的mRNA 和蛋白质水平降低。下丘脑视前区的神经细胞增殖增加。总之，多巴胺能神经元发育可能是生命早期全氟辛酸暴露的目标之一。PFOA 暴露引起的神经行为变化可能与斑马鱼幼虫多巴胺能神经元发育和多巴胺功能的多个方面有关。