State Key Laboratory of Clean and Efficient Coal Utilization, Taiyuan University of Technology, Taiyuan 030024, China.
School of Life Science, Shanxi University, Taiyuan 030006, China.
Molecules. 2024 May 21;29(11):2414. doi: 10.3390/molecules29112414.
Copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) are extensively used in electronics, cosmetics, fungicides, and various other fields due to their distinctive qualities. However, this widespread usage can contribute to environmental contamination and heightened health risks for living organisms. Despite their prevalent use, the ecological impacts and biosafety of CuNPs remain inadequately understood. The present study aims to delve into the potential toxic effects of CuNPs on zebrafish () embryos, focusing on multiple indexes such as embryonic development, neurotoxicity, oxidative stress, and inflammatory response. The results revealed a notable increase in the death rate and deformity rate, alongside varying degrees of decrease in hatching rate and heart rate following CuNPs exposure. Particularly, the frequency of spontaneous tail coiling significantly declined under exposure to CuNPs at concentrations of 500 µg/L. Furthermore, CuNPs exposure induced alterations in the transcriptional expression of GABA signaling pathway-related genes (, , and ), indicating potential impacts on GABA synthesis, release, catabolism, recovery, and receptor binding. Additionally, CuNPs triggered oxidative stress, evidenced by disruption in superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) activities, along with elevated malondialdehyde (MDA) levels. This oxidative stress subsequently led to a proinflammatory cascade, as demonstrated by the increased transcriptional expression of inflammatory markers , , and ). Comparative analysis with copper ion (provided as CuCl) exposure highlighted more significant changes in most indexes with CuCl, indicating greater toxicity compared to CuNPs at equivalent concentrations. In conclusion, these findings provide valuable insights into the toxic effects of CuNPs on zebrafish embryo development and neurotransmitter conduction. Furthermore, they present technical methodologies for assessing environmental and health risks associated with CuNPs, contributing to a better understanding of their biosafety and ecological impact.
铜纳米粒子（CuNPs）由于其独特的性质，被广泛应用于电子、化妆品、杀菌剂和其他各种领域。然而，这种广泛的应用可能导致环境污染和生物机体健康风险增加。尽管 CuNPs 被广泛使用，但它们对生态环境的影响和生物安全性仍未得到充分了解。本研究旨在深入探讨 CuNPs 对斑马鱼胚胎的潜在毒性作用，重点关注胚胎发育、神经毒性、氧化应激和炎症反应等多个指标。研究结果表明，CuNPs 暴露后，胚胎死亡率和畸形率显著增加，孵化率和心率不同程度下降。特别是在 500 µg/L CuNPs 暴露下，自发卷曲尾巴的频率显著降低。此外，CuNPs 暴露诱导 GABA 信号通路相关基因（、、和）的转录表达发生变化，表明其可能对 GABA 的合成、释放、分解代谢、恢复和受体结合产生影响。此外，CuNPs 引发了氧化应激，超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）、过氧化氢酶（CAT）和谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶（GPx）活性的破坏以及丙二醛（MDA）水平的升高都证明了这一点。这种氧化应激随后引发了炎症级联反应，炎症标志物（、、和）的转录表达增加证明了这一点。与铜离子（以 CuCl 的形式提供）暴露的比较分析表明，CuCl 在大多数指标上的变化更为显著，这表明在等效浓度下，CuCl 比 CuNPs 具有更大的毒性。总之，这些发现为 CuNPs 对斑马鱼胚胎发育和神经递质传导的毒性作用提供了有价值的见解。此外，它们还提供了评估与 CuNPs 相关的环境和健康风险的技术方法，有助于更好地理解其生物安全性和生态影响。
