Ocean acidification enhances the embryotoxicity of CuO nanoparticles to Oryzias melastigma

Hao Wang; Qi Sui; Jian Zhao; Xuemei Sun; Lin Zhu; Bijuan Chen; Keming Qu; Bin Xia

doi:10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131361

Ocean acidification enhances the embryotoxicity of CuO nanoparticles to Oryzias melastigma

J Hazard Mater. 2023 Jul 5:453:131361. doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131361. Epub 2023 Apr 3.

Authors

Hao Wang¹, Qi Sui², Jian Zhao³, Xuemei Sun⁴, Lin Zhu⁴, Bijuan Chen⁴, Keming Qu², Bin Xia⁵

Affiliations

¹ Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; Institute of Costal Environmental Pollution Control, Key Laboratory of Marine Environment and Ecology (Ministry of Education), Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China.
² Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China.
³ Institute of Costal Environmental Pollution Control, Key Laboratory of Marine Environment and Ecology (Ministry of Education), Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China; Laboratory for Marine Ecology and Environmental Science, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao 266237, China. Electronic address: jzhao@ouc.edu.cn.
⁴ Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; Laboratory for Marine Ecology and Environmental Science, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao 266237, China.
⁵ Yellow Sea Fisheries Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Fishery Sciences, Qingdao 266071, China; Laboratory for Marine Ecology and Environmental Science, Qingdao National Laboratory for Marine Science and Technology, Qingdao 266237, China. Electronic address: xiabin@ysfri.ac.cn.

PMID: 37043857
DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.131361

Abstract

Concerns are raised towards individual effects of ocean acidification (OA) and engineered nanoparticles (NPs) on marine organisms. However, there are scarce studies regarding nanotoxicity under OA conditions. We investigated the combined effects of OA (pHs, 7.70 and 7.40) and CuO NPs on the embryotoxicity of marine medaka Oryzias melastigma and the bioavailability of CuO NPs in embryos. The results showed that OA alleviated the aggregation of CuO NPs and promoted the dissolution of CuO NPs in seawater (increased by 0.010 and 0.029 mg/L under pHs 7.70 and 7.40, respectively). Synergistic effects of OA with CuO NPs on medaka embryos were observed as indicated by much higher mortality and oxidative damage. Importantly, the enhanced toxicity of CuO NPs to medaka embryos under OA conditions mainly originated from the higher bioavailability of particulate CuO (e.g., 30.28 mg/kg at pH 7.40) rather than their released Cu²⁺ ions (e.g. 3.04 mg/kg at pH 7.40). The weaker aggregation of NPs under OA conditions resulted in higher penetration of individual particles (or small aggregates) into embryos through the micropyle and chorionic pores, causing enhanced bioavailability of NPs. The obtained results provided underlying insights into understanding the risk of NPs to marine ecosystem under OA conditions.

Keywords: Aggregation; Bioavailability; CuO nanoparticles; Ocean acidification; Oryzias melastigma.

Publication types

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

MeSH terms

Animals
Copper / toxicity
Ecosystem
Hydrogen-Ion Concentration
Metal Nanoparticles* / toxicity
Nanoparticles* / toxicity
Ocean Acidification
Oryzias*
Seawater / chemistry
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / toxicity

Substances

cupric oxide
Water Pollutants, Chemical
Copper