title: Toxic effects of imidazolium-based ionic liquids on Caenorhabditis elegans: the role of reactive oxygen species.
abstract: By using Caenorhabditis elegans (C. elegans) as a model animal, the present work is aimed to evaluate the acute toxicity of imidazolium-based bromide Ionic Liquids (ILs), and to elucidate the underlying mechanisms involved. Firstly, 24-h median lethal concentration (LC50) for eight ILs with different alkyl chain lengths and one or two methyl groups in the imidazolium ring were determined to be in a range of 0.09-6.64 mg mL(-1). Four ILs were selected to investigate the toxic mechanisms. Mortality, levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), lipofuscin accumulation and expression of superoxide dismutase 3 in C. elegans were determined after exposed to ILs at sub-lethal concentrations for 12h. A significant increase in the levels of these biomarkers was observed in accordance with the results of 12-h lethality assay. The addition of 0.5% dimethyl sulfoxide, which acts as a radical scavenger, remarkably rescued the lethality of C. elegans and significantly decreased the ROS level in C. elegans. Our results suggest that ROS play an important role in IL-induced toxicity in C. elegans.
authors.affiliation: School of Earth and Space Sciences, University of Science & Technology of China, Hefei 230026, China.
authors.forename: Xuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Zhong-Hua
authors.initials: ZH
authors.lastname: Tong
authors.forename: Ling-Li
authors.initials: LL
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Han-Qing
authors.initials: HQ
authors.lastname: Yu
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017173:Caenorhabditis elegans / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D007093:Imidazoles / Q000633:toxicity*; D052578:Ionic Liquids / Q000633:toxicity*; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism*; D018570:Risk Assessment
chemical_list: D004785:Environmental Pollutants; D007093:Imidazoles; D052578:Ionic Liquids; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species
keywords: C. elegans; Ionic liquid; Mechanism; Reactive oxygen species; Toxicity