Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1
Department of Occupational Health Engineering, School of Public Health, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
2
Department of Occupational Health Engineering, Faculty of Health, Tabriz University of Medical Sciences, Tabriz, Iran
3
Safety Promotion and Injury Prevention Research Center and School of Public Health, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
4
Neuroscience Research Center, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
Abstract
Background: Carbon-based nanomaterials (CBNs) are the key elements in nanotechnology. The main challenge presented by CBNs is their relationship with the toxicity exposed in the biological systems, because of the incomplete information on their toxicity. This study is aimed to compare the cytotoxicity of graphite nanoparticles (GRNPs), graphene nanoparticles (GNPs), and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) in A549 cells.
Materials and Methods: The physicochemical properties of nanomaterials were determined by instrumental techniques. CBNs were dispersed by the nongenotoxic standard procedure. After the cells were cultured, they were exposed to different concentrations of CBNs. Cellular viability was determined by the MTT (3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide) method. Moreover, toxicological indicators were obtained using linear probit regression.
Results: The degree of cytotoxicity of CBNs in A549 cells was related to the time and, particularly, dose. At the concentrations of lower than 300 μg/mL, GNPs had stronger toxicity than MWCNTs, but the cytotoxic effects were reversed with the increase of the concentrations. The no-observed-adverse-effect concentration (NOAEC) of GRNPs, GNPs, and MWCNTs was 1.76, 0.06, and 0.65 μg/mL, respectively.
Conclusion: The results indicated that CBNs were toxic and GNPs had stronger toxicity than the others. The experimental results can be useful in increasing the knowledge about the toxicity and health risk management of CBNs.
Keywords
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