Vanbrabant Kenneth, Rasking Leen, Vangeneugden Maartje, Bové Hannelore, Ameloot Marcel, Vanmierlo Tim, Schins Roel P F, Cassee Flemming R, Plusquin Michelle
Centre for Environmental Sciences, Hasselt University, Agoralaan gebouw D, Diepenbeek, BE-3590, Belgium.
Department of Sciences, Hasselt University, Diepenbeek, Belgium.
Part Fibre Toxicol. 2024 Dec 5;21(1):51. doi: 10.1186/s12989-024-00612-7.
The effects of ultrafine particle (UFP) inhalation on neurodevelopment, especially during critical windows of early life, remain largely unexplored. The specific time windows during which exposure to UFP might be the most detrimental remain poorly understood. Here, we studied early-life exposure to clean ultrafine carbonaceous particles (UFP) and neurodevelopment and central nervous system function in offspring.Pregnant wild-type C57BL/6J mice were either sham-exposed (HEPA-filtered air) or exposed to clean ultrafine carbonaceous particles at a concentration of 438 ± 72 μg/m³ (mean ± SD) and a count median diameter of 49 ± 2 nm (CMD ± GSD) via whole-body exposure for four hours per day. For prenatal exposure, mice were exposed for two consecutive days in two exposure periods, while the postnatal exposure was conducted for four consecutive days in two exposure periods. The mice were divided into four groups: (i) sham, (ii) only prenatal exposure, (iii) only postnatal exposure, and (iv) both prenatal and postnatal exposure. Neurodevelopmental behaviour was assessed throughout the life of the offspring using a functional observation battery.Early-life UFP-exposed offspring exhibited altered anxiety-related behaviour in the open field test, with exclusively postnatally exposed offspring (567 ± 120 s) spending significantly more time within the border zone of the arena compared to the sham group (402 ± 73 s), corresponding to an increase of approximately 41% (p < 0.05). The behavioural alterations remained unaffected by olfactory function or maternal behaviour. Mice with both prenatal and postnatal exposure did not show this effect. No discernible impact on developmental behavioural reflexes was evident.Early life exposure to UFP, particularly during the early postnatal period, may lead to developmental neurotoxicity, potentially resulting in complications for the central nervous system later in life. The current data will support future studies investigating the possible effects and characteristics of nanoparticle-based toxicity.
吸入超细颗粒物（UFP）对神经发育的影响，尤其是在生命早期的关键窗口期，在很大程度上仍未得到充分研究。人们对暴露于UFP可能最有害的具体时间窗口仍知之甚少。在此，我们研究了生命早期暴露于清洁的超细碳质颗粒（UFP）对后代神经发育和中枢神经系统功能的影响。将怀孕的野生型C57BL/6J小鼠分为假暴露组（通过高效空气过滤器过滤的空气）或暴露于浓度为438±72μg/m³（平均值±标准差）、计数中位直径为49±2nm（CMD±几何标准差）的清洁超细碳质颗粒组，通过全身暴露，每天暴露4小时。对于产前暴露，小鼠在两个暴露期连续暴露两天，而产后暴露在两个暴露期连续进行四天。小鼠被分为四组：（i）假暴露组，（ii）仅产前暴露组，（iii）仅产后暴露组，以及（iv）产前和产后均暴露组。使用功能观察组合在后代的整个生命过程中评估神经发育行为。生命早期暴露于UFP的后代在旷场试验中表现出与焦虑相关行为的改变，仅产后暴露的后代（567±120秒）在场地边界区域内停留的时间明显比假暴露组（402±73秒）更长，增加了约41%（p<0.05）。行为改变不受嗅觉功能或母性行为的影响。产前和产后均暴露的小鼠未表现出这种效应。对发育行为反射没有明显的可察觉影响。生命早期暴露于UFP，特别是在出生后早期，可能导致发育性神经毒性，可能在以后的生活中导致中枢神经系统并发症。目前的数据将支持未来研究纳米颗粒毒性的可能影响和特征。
