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Mechanisms of silver nanoparticle toxicity to the coastal marine diatom Chaetoceros curvisetus

Mechanisms of silver nanoparticle toxicity to the coastal marine diatom Chaetoceros curvisetus
Mechanisms of silver nanoparticle toxicity to the coastal marine diatom Chaetoceros curvisetus
Inputs of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to marine waters continue to increase yet mechanisms of AgNPs toxicity to marine phytoplankton are still not well resolved. This study reports a series of toxicity experiments on a representative coastal marine diatom species Chaetoceros curvisetus using the reference AgNP, NM-300K. Exposure to AgNPs resulted in photosynthetic impairment and loss of diatom biomass in proportion to the supplied AgNP dose. The underlying mechanism of toxicity was explored via comparing biological responses in parallel experiments. Diatom responses to AgNP, free Ag(I) species, and dialysis bag-retained AgNP treatments showed marked similarity, pointing towards a dominant role of Ag(I) species uptake, rather than NPs themselves, in inducing the toxic response. In marked contrast to previous studies, addition of the organic complexing agent cysteine (Cys) alongside Ag only marginally moderated toxicity, implying AgCys− complexes were bioavailable to this diatom species. A preliminary field experiment with a natural phytoplankton community in the southeast Atlantic Ocean showed no significant toxic response at a NM-300 K concentration that resulted in ~40% biomass loss in the culture studies, suggesting a modulating effect of natural seawaters on Ag toxicity.
2045-2322
Lodeiro, Pablo
6a8169d1-5fc0-43cf-b59d-b92cd6cc3b3b
Browning, Thomas J.
5ca7f9b5-c1cd-493a-aed1-b371006a59e4
Achterberg, Eric P.
685ce961-8c45-4503-9f03-50f6561202b9
Guillou, Aurélie
75e0f69e-c650-4933-8bb8-b4938d0be5fb
El-shahawi, Mohammad S.
28508d32-a6fe-4761-919d-a5874e6f4b79
Lodeiro, Pablo
6a8169d1-5fc0-43cf-b59d-b92cd6cc3b3b
Browning, Thomas J.
5ca7f9b5-c1cd-493a-aed1-b371006a59e4
Achterberg, Eric P.
685ce961-8c45-4503-9f03-50f6561202b9
Guillou, Aurélie
75e0f69e-c650-4933-8bb8-b4938d0be5fb
El-shahawi, Mohammad S.
28508d32-a6fe-4761-919d-a5874e6f4b79

Lodeiro, Pablo, Browning, Thomas J., Achterberg, Eric P., Guillou, Aurélie and El-shahawi, Mohammad S. (2017) Mechanisms of silver nanoparticle toxicity to the coastal marine diatom Chaetoceros curvisetus. Scientific Reports, 7 (1), [10777]. (doi:10.1038/s41598-017-11402-x).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Inputs of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) to marine waters continue to increase yet mechanisms of AgNPs toxicity to marine phytoplankton are still not well resolved. This study reports a series of toxicity experiments on a representative coastal marine diatom species Chaetoceros curvisetus using the reference AgNP, NM-300K. Exposure to AgNPs resulted in photosynthetic impairment and loss of diatom biomass in proportion to the supplied AgNP dose. The underlying mechanism of toxicity was explored via comparing biological responses in parallel experiments. Diatom responses to AgNP, free Ag(I) species, and dialysis bag-retained AgNP treatments showed marked similarity, pointing towards a dominant role of Ag(I) species uptake, rather than NPs themselves, in inducing the toxic response. In marked contrast to previous studies, addition of the organic complexing agent cysteine (Cys) alongside Ag only marginally moderated toxicity, implying AgCys− complexes were bioavailable to this diatom species. A preliminary field experiment with a natural phytoplankton community in the southeast Atlantic Ocean showed no significant toxic response at a NM-300 K concentration that resulted in ~40% biomass loss in the culture studies, suggesting a modulating effect of natural seawaters on Ag toxicity.

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Accepted/In Press date: 21 August 2017
e-pub ahead of print date: 7 September 2017
Published date: 1 December 2017

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 414256
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/414256
ISSN: 2045-2322
PURE UUID: 6e9d59b3-e649-4148-b6fb-d56432b30db2

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Date deposited: 21 Sep 2017 16:31
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 16:06

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Contributors

Author: Pablo Lodeiro
Author: Thomas J. Browning
Author: Aurélie Guillou
Author: Mohammad S. El-shahawi

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