Cytotoxicity of titanium dioxide nanoparticles in mouse fibroblast cells.
Nanotitanium dioxide (TiO2) is an important industrial material that is widely used as an additive in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and food colorants. Although the small size of the TiO2 nanoparticle is useful in various applications, the biosafety of this material needs to be evaluated. In this study, mouse fibroblast (L929) cells were used to evaluate the cytotoxicity of different concentrations (3-600 microg/mL) of homogeneous and weakly aggregated TiO2 nanoparticles in aqueous solution. The L929 cells became round and even shrank as the concentration of TiO2 nanoparticles increased. Moreover, TiO2 nanoparticle-treated cells had condensed fragmented chromatin or were directly necrosed, as observed by acridine orange (AO) staining. The transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis showed that in cells cultured in a medium containing 300 microg/mL TiO2, the number of lysosomes increased, and some cytoplasmic organelles were damaged. In addition, there was a significant increase in oxidative stress at higher TiO2 nanoparticle concentrations (>60 microg/mL). As the concentration of TiO2 nanoparticles increased in the culture medium, the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) increased, while those of methyl tetrazolium cytotoxicity (MTT), glutathione (GSH), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) decreased. A possible mechanism for the cytotoxicity of TiO2 nanoparticles is also discussed.
Jin
Cheng-Yu
CY
Instrumental Analysis Center, School of Chemistry & Chemical Engineering, School of Life Science and Biotechnology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
Zhu
Bang-Shang
BS
Wang
Xue-Feng
XF
Lu
Qing-Hua
QH
D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects; D049109:Cell Proliferation / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D003460:Crystallization; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D015195:Drug Design; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D007770:L-Lactate Dehydrogenase / Q000378:metabolism; D051379:Mice; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000633:toxicity*; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000187:drug effects; D010316:Particle Size; D033362:Powder Diffraction; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism; D014025:Titanium / Q000737:chemistry / Q000633:toxicity*
D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; C009495:titanium dioxide; D014025:Titanium; D007770:L-Lactate Dehydrogenase