Oral feeding of nanoplastics affects brain function of mice by inducing macrophage IL-1 signal in the intestine

Qianyu Yang; Huaxing Dai; Ying Cheng; Beilei Wang; Jialu Xu; Yue Zhang; Yitong Chen; Fang Xu; Qingle Ma; Fang Lin; Chao Wang

doi:10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112346

Oral feeding of nanoplastics affects brain function of mice by inducing macrophage IL-1 signal in the intestine

Cell Rep. 2023 Apr 25;42(4):112346. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112346. Epub 2023 Apr 4.

Authors

Qianyu Yang¹, Huaxing Dai¹, Ying Cheng², Beilei Wang¹, Jialu Xu¹, Yue Zhang¹, Yitong Chen¹, Fang Xu¹, Qingle Ma¹, Fang Lin³, Chao Wang⁴

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-based Functional Materials and Devices, Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123, China.
² Institute of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Aging and Nervous Diseases, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Neuropsychiatric Disease, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China.
³ Institute of Pharmacology, Laboratory of Aging and Nervous Diseases, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Neuropsychiatric Disease, College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Soochow University, Suzhou 215123, China. Electronic address: linfang-1@suda.edu.cn.
⁴ Institute of Functional Nano & Soft Materials (FUNSOM), Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Carbon-based Functional Materials and Devices, Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123, China. Electronic address: cwang@suda.edu.cn.

PMID: 37022934
DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.112346

Abstract

Nanoplastics (NPs) as contaminants in food and water have drawn increasing public attention. However, little is known about how NPs shape the gut immune landscape after injection. In this study, we fabricate NPs (∼500 nm) and microplastics (MPs) (∼2 μm) and evaluate their in vivo effects by feeding them to mice. The results suggest that NPs show a better ability to induce gut macrophage activation than MPs. In addition, NPs trigger gut interleukin-1 (IL-1)-producing macrophage reprogramming via inducing lysosomal damage. More importantly, IL-1 signaling from the intestine can affect brain immunity, leading to microglial activation and Th17 differentiation, all of which correlates with a decline in cognitive and short-term memory in NP-fed mice. Thus, this study provides insight into the mechanism of action of the gut-brain axis, delineates the way NPs reduce brain function, and highlights the importance of fixing the plastic pollution problem worldwide.

Keywords: CP: Immunology; CP: Neuroscience; IL-1 signaling; gut immunity; gut-brain axis; nanoplastics.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Brain
Interleukin-1*
Intestines
Macrophages
Mice
Microplastics* / toxicity
Plastics

Substances

Interleukin-1
Microplastics
Plastics