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Nanotoxicology Research: Caenorhabditis elegans as a Model Organism

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A special issue of Toxics (ISSN 2305-6304). This special issue belongs to the section "Novel Methods in Toxicology Research".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 November 2023) | Viewed by 5328

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Dayong Wang

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Guest Editor

Key Laboratory of Environmental Medicine Engineering of Ministry of Education, Medical School, Southeast University, Nanjing, China
Interests: environmental toxicology; nanotoxicology; microplastics; emerging contaminants; mechanism-specific toxicity

Dr. Huanliang Liu

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Guest Editor

Environment and Health Research Division, Public Health Research Center, Wuxi School of Medicine, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, China
Interests: nanotoxicology; nanoplastics; reproductive toxicity; neurotoxicology; emerging pollutants; toxicity assessment; mechanism-specific toxicity

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the Special Issue “Nanotoxicology Research: Caenorhabditis elegans as a Model Organism”, we invite the submission of manuscripts on toxicity assessment and toxicological study of different types of nanomaterials using C. elegans as an animal model. The scope of this Special Issue includes but is not limited to (1) toxicity assessment of different nanomaterials and nanocomposites; (2) factors affecting nanotoxicity induction; (3) chemical basis of nanotoxicity induction, such as chemical modifications; (4) cellular and molecular mechanisms of nanotoxicity induction; and (5) role of additives in nanotoxicity induction. This Special Issue aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the value of the C. elegans animal model in nanotoxicology research.

Prof. Dr. Dayong Wang
Dr. Huanliang Liu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Toxics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

toxicity assessment
toxicology
nanoparticles
carbon-based materials
quantum dots
additives
nanocomposites

Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

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12 pages, 2636 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Combined Effects of Micro- and Nanoplastics at the Predicted Environmental Concentration on Functional State of Intestinal Barrier in Caenorhabditis elegans

by Yu Wu, Xiaochao Tan, Xian Shi, Peiyu Han and Huanliang Liu

Toxics 2023, 11(8), 653; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics11080653 - 28 Jul 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1235

Abstract

The possible toxicity caused by nanoplastics or microplastics on organisms has been extensively studied. However, the unavoidably combined effects of nanoplastics and microplastics on organisms, particularly intestinal toxicity, are rarely clear. Here, we employed Caenorhabditis elegans to investigate the combined effects of PS-50 (50 nm nanopolystyrene) and PS-500 (500 nm micropolystyrene) at environmentally relevant concentrations on the functional state of the intestinal barrier. Environmentally, after long-term treatment (4.5 days), coexposure to PS-50 (10 and 15 μg/L) and PS-500 (1 μg/L) resulted in more severe formation of toxicity in decreasing locomotion behavior, in inhibiting brood size, in inducing intestinal ROS production, and in inducting intestinal autofluorescence production, compared with single-exposure to PS-50 (10 and 15 μg/L) or PS-500 (1 μg/L). Additionally, coexposure to PS-50 (15 μg/L) and PS-500 (1 μg/L) remarkably caused an enhancement in intestinal permeability, but no detectable abnormality of intestinal morphology was observed in wild-type nematodes. Lastly, the downregulation of acs-22 or erm-1 expression and the upregulation expressions of genes required for controlling oxidative stress (sod-2, sod-3, isp-1, clk-1, gas-1, and ctl-3) served as a molecular basis to strongly explain the formation of intestinal toxicity caused by coexposure to PS-50 (15 μg/L) and PS-500 (1 μg/L). Our results suggested that combined exposure to microplastics and nanoplastics at the predicted environmental concentration causes intestinal toxicity by affecting the functional state of the intestinal barrier in organisms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanotoxicology Research: Caenorhabditis elegans as a Model Organism)

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15 pages, 2545 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Sulfonate-Modified Polystyrene Nanoparticle at Precited Environmental Concentrations Induces Transgenerational Toxicity Associated with Increase in Germline Notch Signal of Caenorhabditis elegans

by Wenmiao He, Aihua Gu and Dayong Wang

Toxics 2023, 11(6), 511; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics11060511 - 06 Jun 2023

Cited by 11 | Viewed by 1285

Abstract

Recently, the transgenerational toxicity of nanoplastics has received increasing attention. Caenorhabditis elegans is a useful model to assess the transgenerational toxicity of different pollutants. In nematodes, the possibility of early-life exposure to sulfonate-modified polystyrene nanoparticle (PS-S NP) causing transgenerational toxicity and its underlying mechanisms were investigated. After exposure at the L1-larval stage, transgenerational inhibition in both locomotion behavior (body bend and head thrash) and reproductive capacity (number of offspring and fertilized egg number in uterus) was induced by 1–100 μg/L PS-S NP. Meanwhile, after exposure to 1–100 μg/L PS-S NP, the expression of germline lag-2 encoding Notch ligand was increased not only at the parental generation (P0-G) but also in the offspring, and the transgenerational toxicity was inhibited by the germline RNA interference (RNAi) of lag-2. During the transgenerational toxicity formation, the parental LAG-2 activated the corresponding Notch receptor GLP-1 in the offspring, and transgenerational toxicity was also suppressed by glp-1 RNAi. GLP-1 functioned in the germline and the neurons to mediate the PS-S NP toxicity. In PS-S NP-exposed nematodes, germline GLP-1 activated the insulin peptides of INS-39, INS-3, and DAF-28, and neuronal GLP-1 inhibited the DAF-7, DBL-1, and GLB-10. Therefore, the exposure risk in inducing transgenerational toxicity through PS-S NP was suggested, and this transgenerational toxicity was mediated by the activation of germline Notch signal in organisms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanotoxicology Research: Caenorhabditis elegans as a Model Organism)

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14 pages, 2073 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperEditor’s ChoiceArticle

Nanoplastic Exposure at Predicted Environmental Concentrations Induces Activation of Germline Ephrin Signal Associated with Toxicity Formation in the Caenorhabditis elegans Offspring

by Yue Zhao, Xin Hua, Qian Bian and Dayong Wang

Toxics 2022, 10(11), 699; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics10110699 - 17 Nov 2022

Cited by 21 | Viewed by 1880

Abstract

In nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, exposure to polystyrene nanoparticles (PS-NPs) at predicted environmental concentrations can cause induction of transgenerational toxicity. However, the underlying mechanisms for toxicity formation of PS-NP in the offspring remain largely unknown. In this study, based on high-throughput sequencing, Ephrin ligand EFN-3 was identified as a target of KSR-1/2 (two kinase suppressors of Ras) in the germline during the control of transgenerational PS-NP toxicity. At parental generation (P0-G), exposure to 0.1–10 μg/L PS-NP caused the increase in expression of germline efn-3, and this increase in germline efn-3 expression could be further detected in the offspring, such as F1-G and F2-G. Germline RNAi of efn-3 caused a resistance to transgenerational PS-NP toxicity, suggesting that the activation of germline EFN-3 at P0-G mediated transgenerational PS-NP toxicity. In the offspring, Ephrin receptor VAB-1 was further activated by the increased EFN-3 caused by PS-NP exposure at P0-G, and RNAi of vab-1 also resulted in resistance to transgenerational PS-NP toxicity. VAB-1 acted in both the neurons and the germline to control toxicity of PS-NP in the offspring. In the neurons, VAB-1 regulated PS-NP toxicity by suppressing expressions of DBL-1, JNK-1, MPK-1, and GLB-10. In the germline, VAB-1 regulated PS-NP toxicity by increasing NDK-1 and LIN-23 expressions and decreasing EGL-1 expression. Therefore, germline Ephrin ligand EFN-3 and its receptor VAB-1 acted together to mediate the formation of transgenerational PS-NP toxicity. Our data highlight the important role of activation in germline Ephrin signals in mediating transgenerational toxicity of nanoplastics at predicted environmental concentrations in organisms. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanotoxicology Research: Caenorhabditis elegans as a Model Organism)

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Review

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34 pages, 1228 KiB

Open AccessReview

Caenorhabditis elegans as a Prediction Platform for Nanotechnology-Based Strategies: Insights on Analytical Challenges

by Priscila Gubert, Greici Gubert, Ronei Cardoso de Oliveira, Isabel Cristina Oliveira Fernandes, Iverson Conrado Bezerra, Bruna de Ramos, Milena Ferreira de Lima, Daniela Teixeira Rodrigues, Adriana Farias Nunes da Cruz, Ernesto Chaves Pereira, Daiana Silva Ávila and Dante Homero Mosca

Toxics 2023, 11(3), 239; https://doi.org/10.3390/toxics11030239 - 01 Mar 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2850

Abstract

Nanotechnology-based strategies have played a pivotal role in innovative products in different technological fields, including medicine, agriculture, and engineering. The redesign of the nanometric scale has improved drug targeting and delivery, diagnosis, water treatment, and analytical methods. Although efficiency brings benefits, toxicity in organisms and the environment is a concern, particularly in light of global climate change and plastic disposal in the environment. Therefore, to measure such effects, alternative models enable the assessment of impacts on both functional properties and toxicity. Caenorhabditis elegans is a nematode model that poses valuable advantages such as transparency, sensibility in responding to exogenous compounds, fast response to perturbations besides the possibility to replicate human disease through transgenics. Herein, we discuss the applications of C. elegans to nanomaterial safety and efficacy evaluations from one health perspective. We also highlight the directions for developing appropriate techniques to safely adopt magnetic and organic nanoparticles, and carbon nanosystems. A description was given of the specifics of targeting and treatment, especially for health purposes. Finally, we discuss C. elegans potential for studying the impacts caused by nanopesticides and nanoplastics as emerging contaminants, pointing out gaps in environmental studies related to toxicity, analytical methods, and future directions. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nanotoxicology Research: Caenorhabditis elegans as a Model Organism)

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