The increasingly widespread use of engineered nanoparticles in medical, industrial, and food applications has raised concerns regarding their potential toxicity to humans and the environment. Silicon dioxide nanoparticles (SiO₂ NPs), which have relatively low direct toxicity, have been increasingly applied in both consumer products and biomedical applications, leading to significantly higher exposure for humans and the environment. We carried out a toxicity assessment of SiO₂ NPs using the common water flea D. magna by focusing on physiological and behavioral indicators such as heart rate, swimming performance, and growth. Exposure to SiO₂ NPs did not produce acute or chronic toxicity at limited concentrations (<100 μg/mL), but did have statistically significant negative effects on heart rate, swimming distance, and body size. The use of fluorescein isothiocyanate in a silica matrix allowed the tracing and visualization of clear SiO₂ NP accumulation in D. magna, which was confirmed by ICP-MS. Although exposure to SiO₂ NPs seemed to affect cardiac and swimming performance, such end-point experiments may be insufficient to fully understand the toxicity of these nanoparticles. However, the physiological and behavioral changes shown here suggest potential adverse effects on the aquatic environment by substances previously considered nontoxic.

中文翻译：

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SiO2 纳米颗粒摄入对大型水蚤的生理和行为影响

工程纳米粒子在医疗、工业和食品应用中的日益广泛使用引起了人们对其对人类和环境的潜在毒性的担忧。二氧化硅纳米颗粒 (SiO ₂ NPs) 具有相对较低的直接毒性，越来越多地应用于消费品和生物医学应用，导致人类和环境的暴露量显着增加。我们使用常见的水蚤D. magna对 SiO ₂ NPs进行了毒性评估，重点关注生理和行为指标，如心率、游泳性能和生长。暴露于 SiO ₂NPs 在有限浓度 (<100 μg/mL) 下不会产生急性或慢性毒性，但对心率、游泳距离和体型确实具有统计学上显着的负面影响。在二氧化硅基质中使用异硫氰酸荧光素可以追踪和可视化D. magna中清晰的 SiO ₂ NP 积累，ICP-MS 证实了这一点。尽管暴露于 SiO ₂ NPs 似乎会影响心脏和游泳性能，但此类终点实验可能不足以完全了解这些纳米颗粒的毒性。然而，此处显示的生理和行为变化表明以前认为无毒的物质对水生环境有潜在的不利影响。