Oxidative stress, cytoxicity, and cell mortality induced by nano-sized lead in aqueous suspensions

This paper reports on the effect of aqueous and nano-particulated Pb on oxidative stress (lipid peroxidation), cytoxicity, and cell mortality. As determined by the Thiobarbituric Acid Reactive Substances (TBARS) method, only 6 h after incubation aqueous suspensions bearing nano-sized PbO₂, soluble Pb(II), and brain-homogenate only suspensions, were determined to contain as much as ca. 7, 5, and 1 nmol TBARS mg protein⁻¹, respectively. Exposure of human cells (central nervous system, prostate, leukemia, colon, breast, lung cells) to nano-PbO₂ led to cell-growth inhibition values (%) ca. ≤18.7%. Finally, as estimated by the Artemia salina test, cell mortality values were found to show high-survival larvae rates. Microscopic observations revealed that Pb particles were swallowed, but caused no mortality, however.     

Ecotoxicity of nanosized TiO2. Review of in vivo data

This report presents an exhaustive literature review of data on the effect of nanoparticulate TiO₂ on algae, higher plants, aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates and freshwater fish. The aim, to identify the biologically important characteristics of the nanoparticles that have most biological significance, was unsuccessful, no discernable correlation between primary particle size and toxic effect being apparent. Secondary particle size and particle surface area may be relevant to biological potential of nanoparticles, but insufficient confirmatory data exist. The nanotoxicity data from thirteen studies fail to reveal the characteristics actually responsible for their biological reactivity because reported nanotoxicity studies rarely carry information on the physicochemical characteristics of the nanoparticles tested. A number of practical measures are suggested which should support the generation of reliable QSAR models and so overcome this data inadequacy.     

改性纳米零价铁的制备及其去除水中的四环素

对聚乙烯吡咯烷酮(PVP-K30)改性纳米零价铁(NZVT)用于水中四环素(TC)的去除进行研究.通过XRD,TEM和BET对改性后的纳米铁性能进行表征.探讨不同反应条件对PVP-NZVI去除四环素的影响.实验结果表明,在制备过程中添加PVP-K30改性剂可以明显减小纳米铁颗粒粒径,增大比表面积,提高TC的去除率.当初...     

微乳液法合成掺硫纳米TiO2及其光催化性能研究

以钛酸四丁酯为钛源,硫脲为掺硫前驱物,采用聚乙二醇辛基苯基醚(Triton X-100)/正己醇/环己烷/氨水的微乳液体系合成了掺硫的纳米TiO2粉体;对其结构进行了表征,以甲基橙为目标降解物考察了其光催化性能.烧结温度通过影响TiO2的晶型转变和颗粒尺寸来影响其光催化性能,随着烧结温度的升高,TiO2的光催化性能先是...     

Heavy metal accumulation by recombinant mammalian metallothionein within Escherichia coli protects against elevated metal exposure

In an effort to minimize the impact on the environment or improve the properties of choice, most engineered nanoparticles used for commercial applications are surface functionalized. The release of these functionalized engineered nanoparticles (FENPs) into the environment can be either deliberate or accidental. Scientific research to date has tended to focus on evaluating the toxicity of FENPs, with less attention being given to exposure assessments or to the study of their general behavior in natural environments. We have therefore investigated the effects of environmental parameters such as pH, NaCl concentration, and natural organic matter concentration on the aggregation kinetics of FENPs with time resolved dynamic light scattering, using functionalized gold nanoparticles (FAuNPs) as a representative of these particles. We also investigated the effects of average particle size, the type of surface capping agent, and particle concentration on FAuNP aggregation kinetics. Our results show that the physico-chemical properties of the capping agent have a greater influence on the aggregation behavior of FAuNPs than either their core composition or their particle size.     

溶液环境对纳米Fe2O3/水界面NOM吸附过程中疏水效应的影响

以腐殖酸和纳米Fe2O3为对象,着重研究了腐殖酸分子在纳米Fe2O3表面的吸附过程中的疏水效应,借助红外光谱和热重等分析方法研究了腐殖酸吸附前后的疏水性随溶液环境变化的规律。结果表明,当离子强度为0、0.005、0.01和0.05 mol/kg,pH从7变到12时,纳米Fe2O3吸附溶解性腐殖酸分子后形成的复合体的热失重量随着pH的升高先减小后增大。当pH从7升高到10时,亲水性降低,疏水性增强;当pH从10升高到12时,亲水性增强,疏水性降低。当离子强度为0.001 mol/kg,pH从7变到12时,复合体的热失重量随着pH的升高而减小,亲水性降低,疏水性增强。当pH为定值,离子强度变化时,纳米Fe2O3吸附溶解性腐殖酸分子后形成的复合体的热失重量随着离子强度的增加不断变化,曲线呈现出波动趋势,亲、疏水性在交替变化。红外光谱分析结果说明,对纳米Fe2O3吸附溶解性腐殖酸分子后形成的复合体的亲疏水性起主要影响的官能团可能是亲水性的羟基—OH、羰基CO和疏水性的CH2烷烃。     

Toxicity of TiO2, ZrO2, Fe,Fe2O3, and Mn2O3 nanoparticles to the yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae

The growing application of engineered nanomaterials is leading to an increased occurrence of nanoparticles (NPs) in the environment. Thus, there is a need to better understand their potential impact on the environment. This study evaluated the toxicity of nanosized TiO₂, ZrO₂, Fe⁰, Fe₂O₃, and Mn₂O₃ towards the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae based on O₂ consumption and cell membrane integrity. In addition, the state of dispersion of the nanoparticles in the bioassay medium was characterized.     

Nickel oxide nanoparticles exert cytotoxicity via oxidative stress and induce apoptotic response in human liver cells (HepG2)

Increasing use of nickel oxide nanoparticles (NiO NPs) necessitates an improved understanding of their potential impact on human health. Previously, toxic effects of NiO NPs have been investigated, mainly on airway cells. However, information on effect of NiO NPs on human liver cells is largely lacking. In this study, we investigated the reactive oxygen species (ROS) mediated cytotoxicity and induction of apoptotic response in human liver cells (HepG2) due to NiO NPs exposure. Prepared NiO NPs were crystalline and spherical shaped with an average diameter of 44 nm. NiO NPs induced cytotoxicity (cell death) and ROS generation in HepG2 cells in dose-dependent manner. Further, ROS scavenger vitamin C reduced cell death drastically caused by NiO NPs exposure indicating that oxidative stress plays an important role in NiO NPs toxicity. Micronuclei induction, chromatin condensation and DNA damage in HepG2 cells treated with NiO NPs suggest that NiO NPs induced cell death via apoptotic pathway. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis showed that following the exposure of HepG2 cells to NiO NPs, the expression level of mRNA of apoptotic genes (bax and caspase-3) were up-regulated whereas the expression level of anti-apoptotic gene bcl-2 was down-regulated. Moreover, activity of caspase-3 enzyme was also higher in NiO NPs treated cells. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report demonstrating that NiO NPs caused cytotoxicity via ROS and induced apoptosis in HepG2 cells, which is likely to be mediated through bax/bcl-2 pathway. This work warrants careful assessment of Ni NPs before their commercial and industrial applications.     

金膜吸附-冷原子吸收光谱法测定空气中的汞

采用新型金膜吸附-冷原子吸收光谱法测定空气中的汞,在0μg/L～100μg/L范围内线性良好,相关系数为0．9991。方法检出限为1．6 ng/m3,RSD为0．5％～2．7％,测定两种不同浓度的汞标准样品,相对误差为6．1％和3．2％。与两种现行国标方法（巯基棉富集和高锰酸钾溶液吸附法）比较,该方法所需试剂种类少,操作简便、吸附效率好,加标回收率高。     

Pure and Mg-doped self-assembled ZnO nano-particles for the enhanced photocatalytic degradation of 4-chlorophenol

A novel self-assembled pure and Mg doped ZnO nano-particles （NPs） were successfully synthesized by a simple low temperature co-precipitation method. The prepared photocatalysts were characterized by X-ray diffraction, high resolution scanning electron mi- croscopy, high resolution transmission electron microscopy, diffuse reflectance spectroscopy and photoluminescence （PL） spectroscopy. The results indicated that the prepared photocatalysts showed high crystallinity with a uniform size distribution of the NPs. The degradation of cholorphenols is highly mandatory in today＇s scenario as they are affecting the environment adversely. Thus, the photocatalytic degradation of 4-chlorophenol （4-CP）, a potent endocrine disrupting chemical in aqueous medium was investigated by both pure and Mg-doped ZnO NPs under UV-light irradiation in the present study. The influence of the Mg content on the structure, morphology, PL character and photocatalytic activity of ZnO NPs were investigated systematically. Furthermore,the effect of different parameters such as 4-CP concentration, photocatalyst amount, pH and UV-light wavelength on the resulting photocatalytic activity was investigated.