International Journal of Nanomedicine (Oct 2020)
Ecotoxicity Evaluation of Pristine and Indolicidin-coated Silver Nanoparticles in Aquatic and Terrestrial Ecosystem
Abstract
Annarita Falanga,1 Antonietta Siciliano,2 Mariateresa Vitiello,3 Gianluigi Franci,4 Valentina Del Genio,5 Stefania Galdiero,5 Marco Guida,2 Federica Carraturo,2 Amir Fahmi,6,* Emilia Galdiero2,* 1Department of Agricultural Science, University of Naples Federico II, Portici 80055, Italy; 2Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Naples 80100, Italy; 3Department of Clinical Pathology, Virology Unit, “San Giovanni di Dio e Ruggi d’Aragona Hospital”, Salerno, Italy; 4Department of Medicine, Surgery and Dentistry “Scuola Medica Salernitana,” University of Salerno, Baronissi, Italy; 5Department of Pharmacy, School of Medicine, University of Naples Federico II, Naples 80134, Italy; 6Rhein-Waal University of Applied Sciences, Kleve D-47533, Germany*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Emilia Galdiero; Amir Fahmi Tel +39081679182Email [email protected]; [email protected]: Metallic nanoparticles (NPs) are highly exploited in manufacturing and medical processes in a broad spectrum of industrial applications and in the academic sectors. Several studies have suggested that many metallic nanomaterials including those derived by silver (Ag) are entering the ecosystem to cause significant toxic consequences in cell culture and animal models. However, ecotoxicity studies are still receiving limited attention when designing functionalized and non.-functionalized AgNPs.Objective: This study aimed to investigate different ecotoxicological profiles of AgNPs, which were analyzed in two different states: in pristine form uncoated AgNPs and coated AgNPs with the antimicrobial peptide indolicidin. These two types of AgNPs are exploited for a set of different tests using Daphnia magna and Raphidocelis subcapitata, which are representatives of two different levels of the aquatic trophic chain, and seeds of Lepidium sativum, Cucumis sativus and Lactuca sativa.Results: Ecotoxicological studies showed that the most sensitive organism to AgNPs was crustacean D. magna, followed by R. subcapitata and plant seeds, while AgNPs coated with indolicidin (IndAgNPs) showed a dose-dependent decreased toxicity for all three.Conclusion: The obtained results demonstrate that high ecotoxicity induced by AgNPs is strongly dependent on the surface chemistry, thus the presence of the antimicrobial peptide. This finding opens new avenues to design and fabricate the next generation of metallic nanoparticles to ensure the biosafety and risk of using engineered nanoparticles in consumer products.Keywords: silver nanoparticles, antimicrobial peptide indolicidin, in vivo toxicity, phytotoxicity, nanotoxicology
