Bakan Buket, Tokmak Merve, Toraman Emine, Elmas Şeydanur, Mendil Ali Sefa, Özkaraca Mustafa
Faculty of Science, Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Atatürk University, Erzurum, 25240, Turkey.
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Pathology, Erciyes University, Kayseri, Turkey.
Mol Biol Rep. 2025 Sep 17;52(1):914. doi: 10.1007/s11033-025-11033-w.
Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is utilized as a coating material prized for its hydrophobic, chemically stable, and heat-resistant properties with its carbon-fluorine chemical bonds. It is extremely difficult to recycle due to cross-linked covalent bonds. Despite its widespread use in the food industry, coating materials and medical fields, there is no study about toxicological response of PTFE NPs on human health. One of the main concerns with the commercial use of products based on nanotechnology is the effect that manufactured nanomaterials have on the environment and human health.
We aimed to reveal the cellular response of PTFE NPs on breast cell lines in several in vitro assays by considering its potential exposure routes. According to results, the significant cytotoxic effect was observed in both cancer and non-cancer cells and DCF fluorescence significantly decreased at highest dose in MCF-10 A, which is indicating that ROS generation decreases compared to the control group. On the contrary, ROS formation increased dose-dependently in the MCF-7 cell line. In cell migration, the closure difference percentage between control and PTFE NPs groups was calculated as 16%. While Bax, P53, Caspase-8, Caspase-3, and Cyt-c gene expression levels were increased significantly, Bcl2 expression levels decreased at applied groups. Significant differences were detected between groups in immunofluorescence staining with γH2AX, EGFR and mTOR antibodies on MCF-10 A and MCF-7 cell lines.
Overall, these findings provide strong evidence that PTFE NPs have serious toxic effects on breast cells with concerns about their safety use.
聚四氟乙烯（PTFE）作为一种涂层材料，因其具有碳氟化学键而具有疏水性、化学稳定性和耐热性等特性而备受青睐。由于交联共价键的存在，其回收利用极其困难。尽管它在食品工业、涂层材料和医疗领域广泛使用，但尚无关于聚四氟乙烯纳米颗粒对人体健康毒理学反应的研究。基于纳米技术的产品商业使用的主要担忧之一是人造纳米材料对环境和人体健康的影响。
我们旨在通过考虑其潜在暴露途径，在多种体外试验中揭示聚四氟乙烯纳米颗粒对乳腺细胞系的细胞反应。根据结果，在癌细胞和非癌细胞中均观察到显著的细胞毒性作用，并且在MCF-10 A细胞系中，最高剂量时DCF荧光显著降低，这表明与对照组相比活性氧生成减少。相反，在MCF-7细胞系中活性氧形成呈剂量依赖性增加。在细胞迁移方面，对照组和聚四氟乙烯纳米颗粒组之间的封闭差异百分比计算为16%。在应用组中，Bax、P53、Caspase-8、Caspase-3和细胞色素c基因表达水平显著升高，而Bcl2表达水平降低。在MCF-10 A和MCF-7细胞系上，用γH2AX、表皮生长因子受体（EGFR）和哺乳动物雷帕霉素靶蛋白（mTOR）抗体进行免疫荧光染色时，各组之间检测到显著差异。
总体而言，这些发现提供了有力证据，表明聚四氟乙烯纳米颗粒对乳腺细胞具有严重毒性作用，令人担忧其安全使用。
