CAS Key Lab for Biomedical Effects of Nanomaterials and Nanosafety, National Center for Nanoscience and Technology, Beijing, P. R. China.
Nanotoxicology. 2012 Aug;6(5):562-75. doi: 10.3109/17435390.2011.590906. Epub 2011 Jun 10.
Increasing production and application of metallic nanomaterials are likely to result in the release of these particles into the environment. These released nanoparticles may enter into the lungs and the central nervous system (CNS) directly through inhalation, which therefore poses a potential risk to human health. Herein, we focus on the systemic toxicity and potential influence on the neurotransmitter secretion of intranasally instilled copper nanoparticles (23.5 nm) at three different doses. Copper nanoparticle-exposed mice exhibit pathological lesions at different degrees in certain tissues and especially in lung tissue as revealed by histopathology and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observations. Inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) results show that the liver, lung and olfactory bulb are the main tissues in which the copper concentrations increased significantly after exposure to a higher level of Cu nanoparticles (40 mg/kg of body weight). The secretion levels of various neurotransmitters changed as well in some brain regions, especially in the olfactory bulb. Our results indicate that the intranasally instilled copper nanoparticles not only cause the lesions where the copper accumulates, but also affect the neurotransmitter levels in the brain.
随着金属纳米材料的产量和应用的增加，这些颗粒很可能被释放到环境中。这些释放的纳米颗粒可能通过吸入直接进入肺部和中枢神经系统（CNS），因此对人类健康构成潜在风险。在此，我们重点研究了鼻腔内注入三种不同剂量的 23.5nm 铜纳米颗粒（CuNPs）对系统毒性和神经递质分泌的潜在影响。组织病理学和透射电子显微镜（TEM）观察结果表明，铜纳米颗粒暴露的小鼠在某些组织，尤其是肺组织中表现出不同程度的病理损伤。电感耦合等离子体质谱（ICP-MS）结果表明，肝脏、肺和嗅球是暴露于较高水平 CuNPs（40mg/kg 体重）后铜浓度显著增加的主要组织。一些脑区，尤其是嗅球，各种神经递质的分泌水平也发生了变化。我们的结果表明，鼻腔内注入的铜纳米颗粒不仅会导致铜积累的部位出现损伤，还会影响大脑中的神经递质水平。
