Profiling of gene expression in lung tissue in C57Bl/6 and DBA/2 mouse strains following exposure to carbon nanotubes

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are fibrous particulates made up of elemental carbon and a novel nanomaterial known for its variety of industrial applications. It has been shown that lung exposure to CNTs may cause adverse effects inclunding lung inflammation and remodeling in experimental models. We investigated the impact of genetic background on the development of adverse outcomes by comparing several common inbred mouse strains and found that C57Bl/6 and DBA/2 strains were polarized in their sensitivity to adverse changes at 4 weeks following an exposure to 4 mg/kg CNT. Here we compare underlying gene expression profiles which may inform the understanding of lung biology underpinning genetic susceptibility to adverse outcomes following environmental or occupational exposure to CNTs. Changes in mRNA profiles were compared between CNT-exposed animals and vehicle-treated controls (n=3/group) of either C57Bl/6 or DBA/2 strains.