Copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) are widely used in various industrial applications, i.e. semiconductor devices, batteries, solar energy converter, gas sensor, microelectronics, heat transfer fluids, and have been recently recognized as emerging pollutants of increasing concern for human and marine environmental health. Therefore, the toxicity of CuO NPs needs to be thoroughly understood. In this study, we evaluated the potential role of oxidative stress in CuO NP toxicity by exploring the molecular response of Arbacia lixula embryos to three CuO NP concentrations (0.7, 10, 20 ppb) by investigating the transcriptional patterns of oxidative stress-related genes (catalase and superoxide dismutase) and metallothionein, here cloned and characterized for the first time. Time- and concentration-dependent changes in gene expression were detected in A. lixula embryos exposed to CuO NPs, up to pluteus stage (72 h post-fertilization, hpf), indicating that oxidative stress is one of the toxicity mechanisms for CuO NPs.

These findings provide new insights into the comprehension of the molecular mechanisms underlying copper nanoparticle toxicity in A. lixula sea urchin and give new tools for monitoring of aquatic areas, thus corroborating the suitability of this embryotoxicity assay for future evaluation of impacted sites.

氧化铜纳米颗粒（CuO NPs）广泛用于各种工业应用中，例如半导体器件，电池，太阳能转换器，气体传感器，微电子学，传热流体，并且最近被公认为是人类和海洋环境日益关注的新兴污染物健康。因此，需要彻底了解CuO NP的毒性。在这项研究中，我们通过研究氧化应激相关基因的转录模式（3，Cu，NP浓度分别为0.7、10、20 ppb），探索了螺旋藻胚胎对三种CuO NP浓度的分子响应（过氧化氢酶和超氧化物歧化酶）和金属硫蛋白，这里是第一次克隆和鉴定。在暴露于CuO NPs的直立螺旋藻胚中直至受精期（受精后72 h，hpf），均检测到基因表达的时间和浓度依赖性变化，这表明氧化应激是CuO NPs的毒性机制之一。

这些发现为了解螺旋藻海胆中的铜纳米颗粒毒性的分子机制提供了新的见识，并为监测水生区域提供了新的工具，从而证实了这种胚胎毒性测定法对未来受影响部位的适用性。