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In vivo toxicity of orally administrated silicon dioxide nanoparticles in healthy adult mice

Environmental Science and Pollution Research volume 22, pages 1127–1132 (2015)Cite this article

Abstract

The increasing use of silica nanoparticles (SiNPs) in various applications including industrial, agriculture, and medicine has raised concerns about their potential risks to human health. Various nanotoxicity researches have been done on the assessment of SiNPs’ toxic effects; however, a few in vivo investigations exist. In this investigation, an in vivo study was done in order to evaluate the oral toxicity of SiNPs. The biochemical levels of 19 different serum parameters were assessed. Moreover, the histopathological changes have been examined as well. We showed that SiNPs with diameters of 10–15 nm in size can cause significant changes in albumin, cholesterol, triglyceride, total protein, urea, HDL, and LDL as well as in alkaline phosphatase and aspartate aminotransferase activity. In addition, histopathological examinations demonstrated that SiNPs have toxic effects on various tissues including liver, kidney, lung, and testis.

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Affiliations

  1. Department of Science, Urmia Branch, Islamic Azad University, Urmia, Iran

    Ramin Hassankhani

  2. Young Researchers and Elite Club, Urmia Branch, Islamic Azad University, Urmia, Iran

    Mohammad Esmaeillou & Hamid Maadi

  3. Department of Pathology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Urmia University, Urmia, Iran

    Ali Asghar Tehrani & Fatemeh Khadir

  4. Industrial and Environmental Biotechnology Division, National Institute of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (NIGEB), Tehran, Iran

    Keyvan Nasirzadeh

Authors
  1. Ramin Hassankhani
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  2. Mohammad Esmaeillou
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  3. Ali Asghar Tehrani
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  4. Keyvan Nasirzadeh
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  5. Fatemeh Khadir
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  6. Hamid Maadi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Hamid Maadi.

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Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

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Hassankhani, R., Esmaeillou, M., Tehrani, A.A. et al. In vivo toxicity of orally administrated silicon dioxide nanoparticles in healthy adult mice. Environ Sci Pollut Res 22, 1127–1132 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-3413-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-3413-7

Keywords

  • SiO2 nanoparticles
  • Oral gavage
  • Liver
  • Kidney
  • Testis
  • Lung
  • Biochemical elements