title: Co-exposure with fullerene may strengthen health effects of organic industrial chemicals.
abstract: In vitro toxicological studies together with atomistic molecular dynamics simulations show that occupational co-exposure with C60 fullerene may strengthen the health effects of organic industrial chemicals. The chemicals studied are acetophenone, benzaldehyde, benzyl alcohol, m-cresol, and toluene which can be used with fullerene as reagents or solvents in industrial processes. Potential co-exposure scenarios include a fullerene dust and organic chemical vapor, or a fullerene solution aerosolized in workplace air. Unfiltered and filtered mixtures of C60 and organic chemicals represent different co-exposure scenarios in in vitro studies where acute cytotoxicity and immunotoxicity of C60 and organic chemicals are tested together and alone by using human THP-1-derived macrophages. Statistically significant co-effects are observed for an unfiltered mixture of benzaldehyde and C60 that is more cytotoxic than benzaldehyde alone, and for a filtered mixture of m-cresol and C60 that is slightly less cytotoxic than m-cresol. Hydrophobicity of chemicals correlates with co-effects when secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-1β and TNF-α is considered. Complementary atomistic molecular dynamics simulations reveal that C60 co-aggregates with all chemicals in aqueous environment. Stable aggregates have a fullerene-rich core and a chemical-rich surface layer, and while essentially all C60 molecules aggregate together, a portion of organic molecules remains in water.
authors.affiliation: Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Maili
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lehto
authors.affiliation: Tampere University of Technology, Department of Physics, Tampere, Finland.
authors.forename: Topi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Karilainen
authors.affiliation: Tampere University of Technology, Department of Physics, Tampere, Finland.
authors.forename: Tomasz
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Róg
authors.affiliation: Tampere University of Technology, Department of Physics, Tampere, Finland.
authors.forename: Oana
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Cramariuc
authors.affiliation: Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Esa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Vanhala
authors.affiliation: Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Jarkko
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tornaeus
authors.affiliation: University of Eastern Finland, Department of Chemistry, Joensuu, Finland.
authors.forename: Helena
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Taberman
authors.affiliation: University of Eastern Finland, Department of Chemistry, Joensuu, Finland.
authors.forename: Janne
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Jänis
authors.affiliation: Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Harri
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Alenius
authors.affiliation: Tampere University of Technology, Department of Physics, Tampere, Finland; University of Southern Denmark, MEMPHYS - Center for Biomembrane Physics, Odense, Denmark.
authors.forename: Ilpo
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Vattulainen
authors.affiliation: Finnish Institute of Occupational Health, Helsinki, Finland.
authors.forename: Olli
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Laine
mesh_terms: D000098:Acetophenones / Q000737:chemistry / Q000633:toxicity; D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational / Q000737:chemistry / Q000633:toxicity*; D001547:Benzaldehydes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000633:toxicity; D019905:Benzyl Alcohol / Q000737:chemistry / Q000633:toxicity; D045744:Cell Line, Tumor; D003408:Cresols / Q000737:chemistry / Q000633:toxicity; D004347:Drug Interactions; D037741:Fullerenes / Q000737:chemistry / Q000633:toxicity*; D006801:Humans; D057927:Hydrophobic and Hydrophilic Interactions; D053583:Interleukin-1beta / Q000378:metabolism; D008264:Macrophages / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D056004:Molecular Dynamics Simulation; D013816:Thermodynamics; D014050:Toluene / Q000737:chemistry / Q000633:toxicity; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000098:Acetophenones; D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D001547:Benzaldehydes; D003408:Cresols; D037741:Fullerenes; C508585:IL1B protein, human; D053583:Interleukin-1beta; C439524:TNF protein, human; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; C032538:4-cresol; D014050:Toluene; D019905:Benzyl Alcohol; C069837:fullerene C60; C038699:acetophenone; C032175:benzaldehyde