Journal Article

Vectorization by nanoparticles decreases the overall toxicity of airborne pollutants

Carpentier, Rodolphe, Platel, Anne, Maiz-Gregores, Helena, Nesslany, Fabrice, Betbeder, Didier

2017

Overview

Atmospheric pollution is mainly composed of volatile pollutants and particulate matter that strongly interact. However, their specific roles in the induction of cellular toxicity, in particular the impact of the vectorization of atmospheric pollutants by ultrafine particles, remains to be fully elucidated. For this purpose, non-toxic poly-lactic co-glycolic acid (PLGA) nanoparticles were synthesized and three pollutants (benzo(a)pyrene, naphthalene and di-ethyl-hexyl-phthalate) were adsorbed on the surface of the nanoparticles in order to evaluate the toxicity (cytotoxicity, genotoxicity and ROS induction) of these complexes to a human airway epithelial cell line. The adsorption of the pollutants onto the nanoparticles was confirmed by HPLC analysis. Interestingly, the cytotoxicity assays (MTT, LDH and CellTox Green) clearly demonstrated that the vectorization by nanoparticles decreases the toxicity of the adsorbed pollutants. Genotoxicity was assessed by the micronucleus test and the comet assay and showed no increase in primary DNA damage or in chromosomal aberrations of nanoparticle vectorized pollutants. Neither cytotoxicity nor genotoxicity was correlated with ROS induction. To conclude, our results indicate that the vectorization of pollutants by nanoparticles does not potentiate the toxicity of the pollutants studied and that, on the contrary, adsorption onto nanoparticles could protect cells against pollutants' toxicity.

• Publisher: Public Library of Science,Public Library of Science (PLoS)
• Subject: Aberration / Adsorption / Air Pollutants - toxicity / Air pollution / Air pollution control / Atmospheric pollution / Benzo(a)pyrene / Benzo(a)pyrene - toxicity / Bioassay / Bioassays / Biology and Life Sciences / Cancer / Cell Line, Tumor / Cell Survival - drug effects / Chromosome Aberrations / Comet Assay / Cosmetics / Cytotoxicity / Damage detection / Deoxyribonucleic acid / Diesel fuels / DNA / DNA damage / DNA Damage - drug effects / Ecology and Environmental Sciences / Engineering and Technology / Gases / Genotoxicity / Glycolic acid / High-performance liquid chromatography / Humans / Indoor air pollution / Innovations / Lactic Acid - chemistry / Life Sciences / Liquid chromatography / Medicine and Health Sciences / Metabolism / Micronucleus Tests / Mutagenesis / Mutation / Nanoparticles / Nanoparticles - chemistry / Nanoparticles - toxicity / Naphthalene / Naphthalenes - toxicity / Outdoor air quality / Particulate emissions / Particulate matter / Physical Sciences / Pollutants / Polyglycolic Acid - chemistry / Polylactide-co-glycolide / Properties / Pyrene / Reactive Oxygen Species - metabolism / Respiratory tract / Surface chemistry / Toxicity