Saad Marwa, Selim Nabila, El-Samad Lamia M
Faculty of Science, Department of Zoology, Alexandria University, Baghdad st., Qism Moharram Bek, Alexandria, Egypt.
Insect Sci. 2025 Apr;32(2):551-584. doi: 10.1111/1744-7917.13421. Epub 2024 Jul 16.
The escalating use of nanodiamonds (NDs) has raised concerns about their ecotoxicological impact, prompting exploration of therapeutic interventions. This paper pioneers the examination of Vitamin B12-conjugated sericin (VB12-SER) as a potential therapeutic approach against ND-induced toxicity in darkling beetles (Blaps polychresta). The study analyzes mortality rates and organ-specific effects, covering the testis, ovary, and midgut, before and after treatments. Following exposure to 10 mg NDs/g body weight, within a subgroup of individuals termed ND2 with a mortality rate below 50%, two therapeutic treatments were administered, including pure sericin (SER) at 10 mg/mL and VB12-SER at 10.12 mg/mL. Consequently, five experimental groups (control, SER, ND2, ND2+SER, ND2+SER+VB12) were considered. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis was performed to assess the lifespan distribution of the insects in these groups over a 30-d period. Analyses revealed increased mortality and significant abnormalities induced by NDs within the examined organs, including cell death, DNA damage, enzyme dysregulation, antioxidant imbalances, protein depletion, lipid peroxidation, and morphological deformities. In contrast, the proposed treatments, especially (ND2+SER+VB12), demonstrated remarkable recovery, highlighting VB12-conjugated SER's potential in mitigating ND-triggered adverse effects. Molecular docking simulations affirmed binding stability and favorable interactions of the VB12-SER complex with target proteins. This research enhances understanding of NDs' effects on B. polychresta, proposing it as an effective bioindicator, and introduces VB12-conjugated SER as a promising therapeutic strategy in nanotoxicological studies.
纳米金刚石（NDs）的使用日益增加，引发了人们对其生态毒理学影响的担忧，促使人们探索治疗干预措施。本文率先研究了维生素B12偶联的丝胶蛋白（VB12-SER）作为一种潜在的治疗方法，用于对抗暗黑鳃金龟（Blaps polychresta）中ND诱导的毒性。该研究分析了处理前后暗黑鳃金龟的死亡率以及包括睾丸、卵巢和中肠在内的器官特异性影响。在暴露于10 mg NDs/克体重后，在一个死亡率低于50%的个体亚组（称为ND2）中，进行了两种治疗处理，包括10 mg/mL的纯丝胶蛋白（SER）和10.12 mg/mL的VB12-SER。因此，考虑了五个实验组（对照组、SER组、ND2组、ND2+SER组、ND2+SER+VB12组）。进行了Kaplan-Meier生存分析，以评估这些组中的昆虫在30天内的寿命分布。分析表明，在所检查的器官中，NDs会导致死亡率增加和显著异常，包括细胞死亡、DNA损伤、酶失调、抗氧化剂失衡、蛋白质消耗、脂质过氧化和形态畸形。相比之下，所提出的治疗方法，特别是（ND2+SER+VB12），显示出显著的恢复，突出了VB12偶联的SER在减轻ND引发的不良反应方面的潜力。分子对接模拟证实了VB12-SER复合物与靶蛋白的结合稳定性和良好相互作用。本研究增进了对NDs对暗黑鳃金龟影响的理解，将其作为一种有效的生物指标，并引入VB12偶联的SER作为纳米毒理学研究中有前景的治疗策略。
