Comparative in vitro study of cholinium-based ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents toward fish cell line

Abstract

With the advent of ionic liquids, much was expected concerning their applicability as an alternative to organic solvents in the chemical technology and biotechnology fields. However, the most studied and commonly used ionic liquids based on imidazolium and pyridinium were found not to be as environmentally friendly as it was first expected. Therefore, a new generation of alternative solvents named natural ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents, composed of natural and/or renewable compounds, have come into focus in recent years. Since the number of newly synthesized chemicals increases yearly, simple and reliable methods for their ecotoxicological assessment are necessary. Permanent fish cell lines can serve as a test system for the evaluation of a chemical's cytotoxicity. This paper presents research results on the cytotoxic effects on Channel Catfish Ovary (CCO) cell line induced by fifteen cholinium-based ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents. Based on the decrease in cell viability, the most obvious toxic effect on CCO cells was caused by ionic liquid choline oxalate, while other solvents tested exhibited low cytotoxicity. Therefore, we can conclude that cholinium-based ionic liquids and deep eutectic solvents are comparatively less toxic to CCO cells than conventional ionic liquids.