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Size‐dependent impacts of silver nanoparticles on the lifespan, fertility, growth, and locomotion of Caenorhabditis elegans
Author(s) -
Contreras Elizabeth Q.,
Puppala Hema L.,
Escalera Gabriela,
Zhong Weiwei,
Colvin Vicki L.
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
environmental toxicology and chemistry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.1
H-Index - 171
eISSN - 1552-8618
pISSN - 0730-7268
DOI - 10.1002/etc.2705
Subject(s) - fertility , caenorhabditis elegans , silver nanoparticle , bioavailability , particle size , nanoparticle , biology , nematode , motility , particle (ecology) , dispersion (optics) , chemistry , nanotechnology , materials science , ecology , bioinformatics , genetics , physics , population , medicine , gene , paleontology , environmental health , optics
The increased bioavailability of nanoparticles engineered for good dispersion in water may have biological and environmental impacts. To examine this issue, the authors assessed the biological effects in nematodes as they relate to exposure to silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) of different sizes at low (1 mg/L Ag), medium (10 mg/L Ag), and high concentrations (100 mg/L Ag). Over multiple generations, the authors found that the smallest particle, at 2 nm, had a notable impact on nematode fertility. In contrast, the largest particle, at 10 nm, significantly reduced the lifespan of parent nematodes (P 0 ) by 28.8% and over the span of 3 generations (F 1 –F 3 ). In addition, a computer vision system automatically measured the adverse effects in body length and motility, which were not size‐dependent. Environ Toxicol Chem 2014;33:2716–2723 . © 2014 SETAC