Prenatal BPB/BPAF exposure induces depression-like behavior in male mice offspring via compound-specific transcriptional dysregulation and neurodevelopmental pathway alterations

The neurodevelopmental toxicity of bisphenol A (BPA) and its substitutes has garnered significant attention. However, the association between two widely detected environmental contaminants—BPAF and BPB—and adolescent depression, along with their underlying mechanisms, remain largely unclear. Here, we established a prenatal BPB/BPAF exposure animal model and demonstrated that such exposure induces depression- and anxiety-like behaviors in weanling male offspring. Through RNA sequencing of cortical tissues, combined with screening of depression-associated transcription factors (TFs), functional enrichment analysis of target genes, and identification of hub genes, we revealed that BPB and BPAF drive disease progression via distinct transcriptional regulatory networks and biological processes. Specifically, BPB significantly downregulate the TFs Lhx8 and Foxp1, targeting hub genes (e.g., Alb, Apoa1, Apoa2, Fga, Serpina1b, Fos, Rassf6, Rassf10, Rassf7, Moap1) to disrupt neuropeptide-, synapse-, transcription- related biological processes. In contrast, BPAF significantly upregulate the TF Neurod1, which modulate hub genes (e.g., Rpl26, Mrpl3,Rpl35, Mrpl1, Kcnd3) involved in neuronal cell body and cerebral cortex development. Molecular docking further confirmed potential binding interactions between BPB and Lhx8/ Foxp1, as well as BPAF and Neurod1, mediated by hydrogen bonding or hydrophobic interactions. These findings demonstrate that BPB and BPAF induce depression-like behavior in male offspring through compound-specific disruption of transcriptional networks, which alter neurodevelopmental pathways, potentially due to their divergent binding affinities to distinct TFs. This research offers new perspectives on the neurodevelopmental toxicity associated with BPA alternatives, offering critical implications for risk assessment and therapeutic targeting of BPAF/BPB-related neuropsychiatric disorders.