Interaction of citrate‐coated silver nanoparticles with earthworm coelomic fluid and related cytotoxicity in Eisenia andrei

Abstract

Understanding the interaction of nanoparticles with biological fluid is important for predicting the behavior and toxicity of nanoparticles in living systems. The earthworm Eisenia andrei was exposed to citrate-coated silver nanoparticles (cAgNPs), and the interaction of cAgNPs with earthworm coelomic fluid (ECF), the cytotoxicity of cAgNPs in earthworm coelomocytes was assessed. The neutral red retention assay showed a reduction in lysosomal stability after exposure. The toxicity of silver ions dissolved from cAgNPs in the soil medium was not significant. The aggregation and dissolution of cAgNPs increased in ECF, which contains various electrolytes that alter the properties of nanoparticles, and their subsequent toxicity. Microscopic and dissolution studies demonstrated that the aggregation of cAgNPs rapidly increased, and readily dissolved in ECF. The bioavailability of cAgNPs to earthworms induced lysosomal cytotoxicity. This is the first report to test the interaction and lysosomal cytotoxicity of nanoparticles in earthworm biofluids.

Different routes, same pathways: Molecular mechanisms under silver ion and nanoparticle exposures in the soil sentinel Eisenia fetida

“…(Kwak et al, 2014) and references). E. fetida has already been used for transcriptomic studies (Tsyusko et al, 2012a;Hayashi et al, 2013); however, recent evidence pointing to deep cryptic speciation in earthworms has the potential to confound such analysis.…”

“…Earthworms are used as a model species for terrestrial ecotoxicology studies, selected because of their key role as ecosystem engineers. Several studies on the effect of NPs on cytotoxicity (Kwak et al, 2014), reproduction (Schlich et al, 2013), behaviour (Shoults-Wilson et al, 2011) and molecular stress (Tsyusko et al, 2012a;Hayashi et al, 2013) in earthworms are available. However, these studies have not evaluated the holistic impact of AgNPs exposure, but instead focused on specific biological endpoints or pathways.…”

Trophic transfer of silver nanoparticles from earthworms disrupts the locomotion of springtails (Collembola)

“…AgNPs were not found in the earthworm tissue samples in this study for a few potential reasons. First, AgNPs were not accumulated or maintained as nanoparticle (NP) speciation because AgNPs can be dissolved in the earthworm coelomic fluids [3]. Next, AgNPs may have been dissolved by the ethanol or phosphate [28,29] used during the TEM sample fixation process.…”

“…Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) can adversely affect a variety of organisms in terrestrial ecosystems, including soil microbial communities [1], plants [2], earthworms [3], and arthropods [4]. To date, however, few studies have evaluated the transfer of ticles [7][8][9][10], Ag nanoparticles [11], carbon nano-onions (CNOs) [12], CeO 2 [5], and La 2 O 3 nanoparticles [6].…”

Assessing bioavailability and genotoxicity of heavy metals and metallic nanoparticles simultaneously using dual-sensing Escherichia coli whole-cell bioreporters

“…Since the accumulation of pollutants causes adverse effects on living organisms, including humans, it is important to understand the mechanisms of the toxic effects. Generally, the toxicity of pollutants, including metals and metallic nanoparticles (NPs), is assessed using diverse model systems such as earthworms, plants, animals, and human cell lines (Fabrega et al 2011;Sytar et al 2013;Heggelund et al 2014;Kwak et al 2014;. However, it is not clear how the metals and NPs induce toxic effects in model systems because each organism utilizes unique mechanisms to respond to different stresses.…”