title: Effects of developmental exposure to TiO2 nanoparticles on synaptic plasticity in hippocampal dentate gyrus area: an in vivo study in anesthetized rats.
abstract: With the increasing applications of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO(2) NPs) in industry and daily life, an increasing number of studies showed that TiO(2) NPs may have negative effects on the respiratory or metabolic circle systems of organisms, while very few studies focused on the brain central nervous system (CNS). Synaptic plasticity in hippocampus is believed to be associated with certain high functions of CNS, such as learning and memory. Thus, in this study, we investigated the effects of developmental exposure to TiO(2) NPs on synaptic plasticity in rats' hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) area using in vivo electrophysiological recordings. The input/output (I/O) functions, paired-pulse reaction (PPR), field excitatory postsynaptic potential, and population spike amplitude were measured. The results showed that the I/O functions, PPR, and long-term potentiation were all attenuated in lactation TiO(2) NPs-exposed offspring rats compared with those in the control group. However, in the pregnancy TiO(2) NPs exposure group, only PPR was attenuated significantly. These findings suggest that developmental exposure to TiO(2) NPs could affect synaptic plasticity in offspring's hippocampal DG area in vivo, which indicates that developmental brains, especially in lactation, are susceptible to TiO(2) NPs exposure. This study reveals the potential toxicity of TiO(2) NPs in CNS. It may give some hints on the security of TiO(2) NPs production and application and shed light on its future toxicological studies.
authors.affiliation: CAS Key Laboratory of Brain Function and Disease, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, 230027, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xiaoyan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Shuting
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yin
authors.forename: Mingliang
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Jutao
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Zhongfei
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Wencai
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Zhifeng
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Yingying
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zha
authors.forename: Diyun
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ruan
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000200:Action Potentials; D000758:Anesthesia; D000818:Animals; D018891:Dentate Gyrus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D017774:Long-Term Potentiation / Q000187:drug effects; D018811:Maternal Exposure; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity / Q000187:drug effects*; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D014025:Titanium / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: C009495:titanium dioxide; D014025:Titanium