Nanoparticles (NPs) size, surface functionalization, and concentration were claimed to contribute to distribution and toxicity outcomes of NPs in vivo. However, intrinsic chemical compositions of NPs caused inconsistent biodistribution and toxic profiles which attracted little attention. In this study, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were used to determine the biodistribution, toxickinetic, and genotoxicity variances in murine animals. The results demonstrated AgNPs and AuNPs were primarily deposited in the mononuclear phagocyte system (MPS) such as the liver and spleen. In particular, AuNPs seemed to be prominently stored in the liver, whereas AgNPs preferentially accumulated in more organs such as the heart, lung, kidney, etc. Also, the circulation in the blood and fecal excretions showed higher AgNPs contents in comparison with the AuNPs. Measurements of the mouse body and organ mass, hematology and biochemistry evaluation, and histopathological examinations indicated slight toxic difference between the AgNPs and AuNPs over a period of two months. RT-qPCR data revealed that AgNPs induced greater changes in gene expression with relevance to oxidative stress, apoptosis, and ion transport. Our observations proved that the NPs chemical composition played a critical role in their in vivo biodistribution and toxicity.Inorganic nanoparticles (NPs) have attracted increasing attention and are used in many fields, such as biomedicine, various industries, and electronics due to their excellent physicochemical properties 1, 2 . Currently, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are one of the most widely used NPs in commercial products (e.g. wound dressings, contraceptive devices, and packaging materials) because of their strong antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory properties 2, 3 . Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) offer a wide range of applications including cosmetics, chemical sensing, drug carriers, bioimaging, and gene therapy 4,5 . The extended use of these inorganic NPs can lead to frequent human exposure via various routes (e.g. ingestion, inhalation and dermal contact) during manufacture, use and disposal. Moreover, compared with their bulk counterparts, AgNPs and AuNPs hold greater surface area to volume ratio, higher particle reactivity, and can undergo surface modifications which could result in greater side effects once these are absorbed into the body 6 . It is therefore imperative to understand the potential biological responses to AgNPs and AuNPs in vivo.Indeed, previous in vitro studies demonstrated that inorganic NPs can induce the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), DNA damage, and apoptosis 7-10 . These observations resulted in a number of in vivo rodent studies that were focused on the toxicity or biokinetics of inorganic NPs following various administration routes 6, . Table S1 summarized the biodistribution and/or toxicity profile of various types of AgNPs and AuNPs in rodents following oral, instillation, inhalation, and intraperitoneal exposures. Prolonged inhalational exposure ...

In spite of the immense benefits from iron oxide magnetic nanoparticles (IOMNs), there is scanty information regarding their metabolic activities and toxicity in vivo.

BackgroundSkeletal muscle plays an important role in the body’s physiology but there are still no effective treatments for volumetric muscle loss (VML) resulting from severe traumatic injury or tumor excision. Recent studies show that a tissue engineering strategy using a compound containing mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) and decellularized extracellular matrix (ECM) scaffold generates significant regenerative effects on VML injury, but the underlying mechanisms are not fully understood.MethodsThe characteristics of human umbilical cord MSCs, including multiplication capacity and multidifferentiation ability, were determined. We constructed a compound containing MSCs and decellularized ECM scaffold which was used for tissue regeneration in a VML model.ResultsWe found that MSCs and decellularized ECM scaffold generated synergistic effects on promoting skeletal muscle tissue regeneration. Interestingly, both MSCs and decellularized ECM scaffold could promote macrophage polarization toward the M2 phenotype and suppress macrophage polarization toward the M1 phenotype, which is widely regarded as an important promoting factor in tissue regeneration. More importantly, MSCs and decellularized ECM scaffold generate synergistic promoting effects on macrophage polarization toward the M2 phenotype, not just an additive effect.ConclusionsOur findings uncover a previously unknown mechanism that MSCs and decellularized ECM scaffold promote tissue regeneration via collaboratively regulating macrophage polarization.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (10.1186/s13287-018-0821-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

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(2 of 16)www.advancedsciencenews.com www.small-methods.com MiR-21 Deficiency Retards ISO-Induced Osteopenia and Affects the Bone Remodeling BalanceNext, we investigated whether miR-21 indeed contributed to the sympatho-adrenergic regulation of bone. To investigate this

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The in vivo toxicity of QDs in animals has been broadly studied; however, their reproductive toxicity towards lactating rodents is currently unknown. This study therefore aims to assess the potential toxicity against dams and offspring after postnatal QD exposure at two doses (5 and 1 nmol per rat) and unravel whether QDs can translocate to pups via breastfeeding. The dose-dependent systemic toxicity of QDs in dams was observed by examining the body weight, hematology, biochemistry, histopathological changes, and sex hormone levels. It was found that the QDs primarily accumulated in the liver and spleen of dams at 1 day post injection (dpi), but the highest concentrations were found in the kidneys at 18 dpi. A few QDs were detected in breast milk and stomach and intestine of pups; this suggested that the QDs were transmitted to breast milk via blood circulation and then transferred to pups via breastfeeding. High-dose QDs induced severe growth inhibition and a 71.08% offspring mortality, while pups showed growth restriction within 90 dpi in the low-dose group. Moreover, the hematology, biochemistry, and histology results showed limited chronic toxicity against offspring in the long term. This study provides a theoretical foundation for the exposure assessment of nanomaterials in lactating animals and for the advancement of QDs in the biomedical field.