Next Generation Sequencing Quantitative Analysis of PCB-exposed and Sham-exposed Rats Liver, Brain, Thymus and Spleen Transcriptomes

Our goal was to investigate the transcriptomes changes on rats liver, brain, thymus, and spleen after exposure to an indoor school air mixture (SAM+) of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Female Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to SAM+ at a concentration of 45.5±5.9 µg/m^3 Σ209PCB or filtered air (sham group) 4 h/day, 6 days/week for 13 weeks using nose-only exposure systems. Twenty-four hours after the final exposure, rats were euthanized by carbon dioxide inhalation followed by cervical dislocation. Cardiac blood was collected and organs were excised and stored at -80 °C until analysis.