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Combined toxicity evaluation of polystyrene nanoplastics and Nano-ZnO of distinctive morphology on human lung epithelial cells
Summary
Researchers tested how polystyrene nanoplastics combined with zinc oxide nanoparticles affect human lung cells, finding that the two pollutants interact differently depending on their shapes and concentrations. Zinc oxide primarily damaged cell membranes while nanoplastics mainly triggered oxidative stress and cell death, and their combined effects varied from additive to counteracting. This study is important because people are likely exposed to both nanoplastics and metal particles in polluted air, and understanding their combined effects is key to assessing real-world health risks.
Despite increasing concerns on the co-exposure of nanoplastics (NPs) and heavy metals including zinc oxide nanoparticles (Nano-ZnO) in the public health, the systematic studies as well as available methodology of combined toxicity evaluation of Nano-ZnO/NPs are lacking. In this study, the single and combined toxicity of Nano-ZnO and polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NPs) on human lung epithelial cells were evaluated by a combination of in vitro approach including real-time cell analysis (RTCA), cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8), oxidative stress, cell membrane integrity and apoptosis assay. RTCA was employed to dynamically monitor the effect of combined exposure of Nano-ZnO and PS-NPs on cell growth, in comparison with end-point CCK-8 assay. It was found that the cytotoxicity of different Nano-ZnO involved disintegration of cell membrane and causing oxidative stress and apoptosis while PS-NPs mainly induced oxidative stress and apoptosis. The proposed study not only pinpointed the distinctive interaction mode between Nano-ZnO and nanoplastics, but provided integrated approaches to environment and health risk assessment of co-exposed Nano-ZnO and nanoplastics.
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