ESEM evaluations of muscle/nanoparticles interface in a rat model

Abstract

In order to examine the influence that shape and chemistry of different materials have on the incitement of a tissue reaction, we implanted five materials (the two metals Ni and Co, the two ceramics TiO2 and SiO2, and the polymer poly vinyl-chloride) as nanoparticles or bulk, in the dorsal muscles of 50 rats. After 6 or 12 months, rats were euthanized and the implanted materials were excised together with the surrounding tissue. After a first histological evaluation, the specimens were prepared for environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) and for energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), in order to analyse the chemical composition of the implanted material after the biological interaction had occurred, and to evaluate the possible corrosion and diffusion of the materials at tissue interface. The results indicate that the metals at nanoscale size have a carcinogenic effect, while the bulk materials only induce a foreign-body reaction. The ESEM observations show a chemical transformation of the materials. Corrosion of the metals and subsequent recombination of the released ions in a sort of organic-inorganic crystals is showed and verified by the EDS analyses. Finally, our hypotheses of the involved pathological mechanism are suggested.

Impact of silicon-based quantum dots on the antioxidative system in white muscle of Carassius auratus gibelio

“…So far, most of the work on tissue distribution of nanoparticles has been restricted to rodents (Kim et al 2006;Gatti et al 2008;Cho et al 2009;Park et al 2009;Xie et al 2010;Liu et al 2011). The present study, as far as we know, is the first report describing silicon-based quantum dots distribution in fish white muscle.…”

Toxicological Effects of Titanium Dioxide Nanoparticles: A Review of In Vivo Studies

“…System. Two studies investigated the biological tolerance of TiO 2 NPs when implanted in rat living tissues [143,144] (Table 8). Interest in this type of research emerges from the promising utilization of NPs in numerous fields of medicine and the not fully understood potential reactions at the tissue-material interface.…”

Instrumental approach toward understanding nano-pollutants

“…Their results showed that the nanoscale metals have carcinogenic effect, while the bulk materials only cause a foreign-body reaction. Their ESEM observations verified the agglomeration of all the NPs, especially for Ni which formed microsize particles that can be attributed to the tendency of NPs to agglomerate and also possible interactions with the tissue [38].…”