Molecular Response of Crop Plants to Engineered Nanomaterials.
Functional toxicology has enabled the identification of genes involved in conferring tolerance and sensitivity to engineered nanomaterial (ENM) exposure in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. Several genes were found to be involved in metabolic functions, stress response, transport, protein synthesis, and DNA repair. Consequently, analysis of physiological parameters, metal content (through ICP-MS quantification), and gene expression (by RT-qPCR) of A. thaliana orthologue genes were performed across different plant species of agronomic interest to highlight putative biomarkers of exposure and effect related to ENMs. This approach led to the identification of molecular markers in Solanum lycopersicum L. and Cucurbita pepo L. (tomato and zucchini) that might not only indicate exposure to ENMs (CuO, CeO2, and La2O3) but also provide mechanistic insight into response to these materials. Through Gene Ontology (GO) analysis, the target genes were mapped in complex interatomic networks representing molecular pathways, cellular components, and biological processes involved in ENM response. The transcriptional response of 38 (out of 204) candidate genes studied varied according to particle type, size, and plant species. Importantly, some of the genes studied showed potential as biomarkers of ENM exposure and effect and may be useful for risk assessment in foods and in the environment.
Department of Life Sciences, University of Parma , Parma 43124, Italy.|Stockbridge School of Agriculture, University of Massachusetts , Amherst, Massachusetts 01003, United States.|The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station , New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
Luca
L
Pagano
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station , New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
Alia D
AD
Servin
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station , New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
Roberto
R
De La Torre-Roche
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station , New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
Arnab
A
Mukherjee
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station , New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
Sanghamitra
S
Majumdar
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station , New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
Joseph
J
Hawthorne
Department of Life Sciences, University of Parma , Parma 43124, Italy.
Marta
M
Marmiroli
Department of Life Sciences, University of Parma , Parma 43124, Italy.
Elena
E
Maestri
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station , New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
Robert E
RE
Marra
Dr. Katherine A. Kelley State Public Health Laboratory , Rocky Hill, Connecticut 06067, United States.
Susan M
SM
Isch
Stockbridge School of Agriculture, University of Massachusetts , Amherst, Massachusetts 01003, United States.
Om Parkash
OP
Dhankher
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station , New Haven, Connecticut 06511, United States.
Jason C
JC
White
Department of Life Sciences, University of Parma , Parma 43124, Italy.
Nelson
N
Marmiroli
D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics*; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D063990:Gene Ontology; D018551:Solanum lycopersicum; D049329:Nanostructures