Lysosomal responses to different gold forms (nanoparticles, aqueous, bulk) in mussel digestive cells: a trade-off between the toxicity of the capping agent and form, size and exposure concentration.

Gold nanoparticles (NPs) are increasingly used in technological materials and consumer products and may have toxicological characteristics distinct from bulk and aqueous gold. The aim of this work was to understand the effects of Au NPs especially, how the form, the size and the coating influence bioaccumulation/biodistribution and toxicity of NPs in mussels, Mytilus galloprovincialis. Mussels were exposed for 3 d to concentrations of Au (0.

Techniques and Protocols for Dispersing Nanoparticle Powders in Aqueous Media-Is there a Rationale for Harmonization?

Selecting appropriate ways of bringing engineered nanoparticles (ENP) into aqueous dispersion is a main obstacle for testing, and thus for understanding and evaluating, their potential adverse effects to the environment and human health. Using different methods to prepare (stock) dispersions of the same ENP may be a source of variation in the toxicity measured. Harmonization and standardization of dispersion methods applied in mammalian and ecotoxicity testing are needed to ensure a comparable data quality and to minimize test artifacts produced by modifications of ENP during the dispersion preparation process.