{"title":"Embryotoxicity analysis of anti-arrhythmia drugs amiodarone, dronedarone, and their metabolites using 3D gastruloid models.","authors":"Courtney Kehaulani Kurashima, Yusuke Marikawa","doi":"10.1016/j.reprotox.2025.109070","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Amiodarone and dronedarone are anti-arrhythmic drugs that are structurally related but differ in iodine content. Although contraindicated during pregnancy due to suspected embryotoxicity based on animal studies, their mechanisms of action and relevance to human development remain unclear. Here, we used gastruloids - 3D aggregates of mouse or human pluripotent stem cells that recapitulate axial elongation morphogenesis of early embryos - to investigate their developmental effects. In mouse gastruloids, both drugs and their major metabolites impaired growth and elongation at 1.5 - 3.0 µM. They also altered expression of genes involved in somite segmentation and retinoic acid biosynthesis. Notably, dronedarone down-regulated additional genes, and only amiodarone's morphological effects were alleviated by retinoic acid supplementation, suggesting distinct mechanisms of action. In human gastruloids, dronedarone induced abnormal convoluted morphology and disrupted gene expression at concentrations as low as 0.05 µM, whereas amiodarone showed effects at 2.0 µM, indicating greater sensitivity of the human model to dronedarone. Transcriptomic analyses revealed both overlapping and distinct gene expression changes between the two drugs. These results demonstrate that gastruloid-based assays can detect adverse effects of amiodarone and dronedarone at clinically relevant concentrations, as therapeutic plasma levels are approximately 1.3 - 2.6 µM for amiodarone and 0.15 - 0.30 µM for dronedarone. The study also provided mechanistic and human-relevant insights not attainable through traditional animal testing. Our findings underscore the utility of stem cell-based models for assessing human developmental toxicity, and support their use in evaluating safer alternatives for anti-arrhythmic therapy during pregnancy.</p>","PeriodicalId":21137,"journal":{"name":"Reproductive toxicology","volume":" ","pages":"109070"},"PeriodicalIF":2.8000,"publicationDate":"2025-09-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Reproductive toxicology","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.reprotox.2025.109070","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"REPRODUCTIVE BIOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Amiodarone and dronedarone are anti-arrhythmic drugs that are structurally related but differ in iodine content. Although contraindicated during pregnancy due to suspected embryotoxicity based on animal studies, their mechanisms of action and relevance to human development remain unclear. Here, we used gastruloids - 3D aggregates of mouse or human pluripotent stem cells that recapitulate axial elongation morphogenesis of early embryos - to investigate their developmental effects. In mouse gastruloids, both drugs and their major metabolites impaired growth and elongation at 1.5 - 3.0 µM. They also altered expression of genes involved in somite segmentation and retinoic acid biosynthesis. Notably, dronedarone down-regulated additional genes, and only amiodarone's morphological effects were alleviated by retinoic acid supplementation, suggesting distinct mechanisms of action. In human gastruloids, dronedarone induced abnormal convoluted morphology and disrupted gene expression at concentrations as low as 0.05 µM, whereas amiodarone showed effects at 2.0 µM, indicating greater sensitivity of the human model to dronedarone. Transcriptomic analyses revealed both overlapping and distinct gene expression changes between the two drugs. These results demonstrate that gastruloid-based assays can detect adverse effects of amiodarone and dronedarone at clinically relevant concentrations, as therapeutic plasma levels are approximately 1.3 - 2.6 µM for amiodarone and 0.15 - 0.30 µM for dronedarone. The study also provided mechanistic and human-relevant insights not attainable through traditional animal testing. Our findings underscore the utility of stem cell-based models for assessing human developmental toxicity, and support their use in evaluating safer alternatives for anti-arrhythmic therapy during pregnancy.
期刊介绍:
Drawing from a large number of disciplines, Reproductive Toxicology publishes timely, original research on the influence of chemical and physical agents on reproduction. Written by and for obstetricians, pediatricians, embryologists, teratologists, geneticists, toxicologists, andrologists, and others interested in detecting potential reproductive hazards, the journal is a forum for communication among researchers and practitioners. Articles focus on the application of in vitro, animal and clinical research to the practice of clinical medicine.
All aspects of reproduction are within the scope of Reproductive Toxicology, including the formation and maturation of male and female gametes, sexual function, the events surrounding the fusion of gametes and the development of the fertilized ovum, nourishment and transport of the conceptus within the genital tract, implantation, embryogenesis, intrauterine growth, placentation and placental function, parturition, lactation and neonatal survival. Adverse reproductive effects in males will be considered as significant as adverse effects occurring in females. To provide a balanced presentation of approaches, equal emphasis will be given to clinical and animal or in vitro work. Typical end points that will be studied by contributors include infertility, sexual dysfunction, spontaneous abortion, malformations, abnormal histogenesis, stillbirth, intrauterine growth retardation, prematurity, behavioral abnormalities, and perinatal mortality.