Health and Environmental Risks of Synthetic Nanoparticles Assessed by Human Cell Lines

Abstract

The toxicological effects of NPs on humans, animals and the environment are largely unknown. Assessment of NP cytotoxicity depends on the choice of test system. Due to NPs’ optical activity and absorption values, they can influence classical cytotoxicity assays. Eight NPs were spiked in MTT and crystal violet assays and tested with HaCaT human skin cells. The MTT assay standard curve optical density (OD) measurements were altered by the presence of trisilanol phenyl and trisilanol isooctyl polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane particles. The crystal violet standard curve OD measurements were significantly shifted by AuNPs, but they did not affect the MTT assay. Carbon black decreased ODs in the MTT and crystal violet assays and was localised in the cell cytoplasm. These findings strongly indicate that careful choice of in vitro viability systems is required to avoid flawed measurements of NPs toxicity.

keywords: Adelaide, Canberra, Melbourne, Perth and Sydney, History of Desalination