Sulfidation is a major transformation product for manufactured silver nanoparticles (Ag-MNPs) in the wastewater treatment process.We studied the dissolution, uptake, and toxicity of Ag-MNP and sulfidized Ag-MNPs (sAg-MNPs) to a model soil organism, Caenorhabditis elegans. Our results show that reproduction was the most sensitive endpoint tested for both Ag-MNPs and sAg-MNPs. We also demonstrate that sulfidation not only decreases solubility of Ag-MNP, but also reduces the bioavailability of intact sAg-MNP. The relative contribution of released Ag(+) compared to intact particles to toxicity was concentration dependent. At lower total Ag concentration, a greater proportion of the toxicity could be explained by dissolved Ag, whereas at higher total Ag concentration, the toxicity appeared to be dominated by particle specific effects.

We used Au nanoparticles (Au-NPs) as a model for studying particle-specific effects of manufactured nanomaterials (MNMs) by examining the toxicogenomic responses in a model soil organism, Caenorhabditis elegans . Global genome expression for nematodes exposed to 4-nm citrate-coated Au-NPs at the LC(10) level (5.9 mg·L(-1)) revealed significant differential expression of 797 genes. The levels of expression for five genes (apl-1, dyn-1, act-5, abu-11, and hsp-4) were confirmed independently with qRT-PCR. Seven common biological pathways associated with 38 of these genes were identified. Up-regulation of 26 pqn/abu genes from noncanonical unfolded protein response (UPR) pathway and molecular chaperones (hsp-16.1, hsp-70, hsp-3, and hsp-4) were observed and are likely indicative of endoplasmic reticulum stress. Significant increase in sensitivity to Au-NPs in a mutant from noncanonical UPR (pqn-5) suggests possible involvement of the genes from this pathway in a protective mechanism against Au-NPs. Significant responses to Au-NPs in endocytosis mutants (chc-1 and rme-2) provide evidence for endocytosis pathway being induced by Au-NPs. These results demonstrate that Au-NPs are bioavailable and cause adverse effects to C. elegans by activating both general and specific biological pathways. The experiments with mutants further support involvement of several of these pathways in Au-NP toxicity and/or detoxification.

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International audienceThe objectives of this study were to evaluate the effect of natural organic matter (NOM) on the dissolution and the toxicity of sulfidized AgNPs (sAgNPs) to a model soil organism, Caenorhabditis elegans in two distinct exposure media. This study demonstrated that the aggregation and dissolution of sAgNPs (75% Ag2S) was influenced by media composition, including inorganic composition and natural organic matter (NOM) concentration. Dissolution of sAgNPs was low (similar to 0.5%) but increased over time in all tested media (2 weeks). The presence of NOM either inhibited or enhanced Ag dissolution. Pony lake fulvic acid increased while Suwanee river and Pahokee peat fulvic acid (PLFA) decreased release of dissolved Ag from sAgNPs. Mortality of C. elegans exposed to sAgNPs was influenced by the inorganic composition of the media: with LC50 values of 8.15 mg Ag L-1 and > 15 mg Ag L-1 in moderately hard reconstituted water and soil solution pore water. Toxicity was totally rescued by the presence of all tested NOM types and concentrations, despite the increase of dissolved Ag in the media with PLFA. Overall, these results showed that the toxicity induced by a partly sulfidized AgNPs in C. elegans is low and negligible in the presence of NOM regardless of NOM influence on dissolution

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Unique properties of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) can be achieved by manipulating their geometries. However, it is not known if the shapes and sizes of AuNPs can be modulated in planta. Here, we evaluated the accumulation of gold across taxonomically diverse plant species (alfalfa, cucumber, red clover, ryegrass, sunflower, and oregano). Significant variations were detected in the uptake of gold in the roots ranging from 500 ppm (ryegrass) to 2500 ppm (alfalfa). Alfalfa was selected for subsequent studies due to its ability to accumulate relatively large quantities of gold in its roots. Temporal analysis revealed that most of the AuNPs formed within 6 h of treatment, and the majority of them fall within the size range of 10-30 nm. Spherical AuNPs (1-50 nm) were detected ubiquitously across different treatments. To elucidate the effects of growth variables on the geometries of in planta synthesized AuNPs, alfalfa was subjected to KAuCl(4) (50 ppm) treatment for 3d under different pH, temperature, and light regimes. Interestingly, manipulation of growth conditions triggered a noticeable shift in the relative abundance of spherical, triangular, hexagonal, and rectangular AuNPs providing empirical evidence toward the feasibility of their in planta engineering.

Environmental context The ability of the soil nematode Caenorhabditis elegans to withstand a wide range of environmental conditions makes it an idea model for studying the bioavailability and effects of engineered nanomaterials. We critically review what has been learned about the environmental fate of engineered nanoparticles, their effects and their mechanisms of toxicity using this model organism. Future systematic manipulation of nanoparticle properties and environmental variables should elucidate how their interaction influences toxicity and increase the predictive power of nanomaterial toxicity studies. Abstract Recent years have seen a rapid increase in studies of nanoparticle toxicity. These are intended both to reduce the chances of unexpected toxicity to humans or ecosystems, and to inform a predictive framework that would improve the ability to design nanoparticles that are less likely to cause toxicity. Nanotoxicology research has been carried out using a wide range of model systems, including microbes, cells in culture, invertebrates, vertebrates, plants and complex assemblages of species in microcosms and mesocosms. These systems offer different strengths and have also resulted in somewhat different conclusions regarding nanoparticle bioavailability and toxicity. We review the advantages offered by the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans, summarise what has been learned about uptake, distribution and effects of nanoparticles in this organism and compare and contrast these results with those obtained in other organisms, such as daphnids, earthworms, fish and mammalian models.

Manufactured nanoparticles (MNP) rapidly undergo aging processes once released from products. Silver sulfide (Ag2S) is the major transformation product formed during the wastewater treatment process for Ag-MNP. We examined toxicogenomic responses of pristine Ag-MNP, sulfidized Ag-MNP (sAg-MNP), and AgNO3 to a model soil organism, Caenorhabditis elegans. Transcriptomic profiling of nematodes which were exposed at the EC30 for reproduction for AgNO3, Ag-MNP, and sAg-MNP resulted in 571 differentially expressed genes. We independently verified expression of 4 genes (numr-1, rol-8, col-158, and grl-20) using qRT-PCR. Only 11% of differentially expressed genes were common among the three treatments. Gene ontology enrichment analysis also revealed that Ag-MNP and sAg-MNP had distinct toxicity mechanisms and did not share any of the biological processes. The processes most affected by Ag-MNP relate to metabolism, while those processes most affected by sAg-MNP relate to molting and the cuticle, and the most impacted processes for AgNO3 exposed nematodes was stress related. Additionally, as observed from qRT-PCR and mutant experiments, the responses to sAg-MNP were distinct from AgNO3 while some of the effects of pristine MNP were similar to AgNO3, suggesting that effects from Ag-MNP is partially due to dissolved silver ions.