Objective: To further investigate the effects of silver ion (Ag+) dissolved from silver nanoparticles (AgNps) on gap junctional intercellular communication (GJIC) between HaCaT cells.
Methods: In this study, 20 000×g of 1 g/L AgNps suspension were centrifuged at 4 °C for 2 h, then the supernatant was collected as Ag(+) stock solution and measured by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS); GJIC was detected by the scrape loading/dye transfer assay; connexin 43 (Cx43) protein and mRNA level were estimated by Western-blot and RT-PCR, respectively.
Results: Different concentrations of Ag(+) (0.01, 0.1 and 1.0 mg/L) did not affect the GJIC significantly. No notable changes were observed in expression of Cx43 protein and mRNA.
Conclusion: The characteristics of Ag(+) and the effects on gap junctional intercellular communication between HaCaT cells may be different from those of AgNps.