The disruption of human trophoblast functions by autophagy activation through PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway induced by exposure to titanium carbide (TiC) MXene.

TiC MXene, as a novel nanomaterial, has attracted great attention due to its promising properties in biomedical applications. However, the potential effects of TiC MXene on trophoblast functions have not been investigated. Here, we found that TiC MXene exposure weakened the extension ability of villus explants in vitro. We employed human trophoblast HTR-8/SVneo cells to reveal the underlying molecular mechanisms by which TiC MXene exposure affected trophoblast functions. Results showed that TiC MXene entered cells and mostly deposited in the cytoplasm, inhibiting cell migration and invasion abilities. Furthermore, we found that TiC MXene exposure elevated autophagy through the inhibition of the PI3K/AKT/mTOR pathway. Meanwhile, the application of an autophagy inhibitor (3-MA) prevented autophagy and restored cell viability, resulting in the recovery of cell migration and invasion abilities. These indicated that the cellular dysfunction induced by TiC MXene may be mediated by autophagy activation. Our results indicated that autophagy is a key factor in eliciting HTR-8/SVneo dysfunction after TiC MXene exposure, which could therefore damage placental development. Autophagy inhibition is a potential therapeutic strategy for alleviating the placental toxicity of nanoparticles.