Abstract
Graphene family nanomaterials (GFNs), including graphene, graphene oxide (GO), reduced graphene oxide (rGO), and graphene quantum dots (GQDs), have manifold potential applications, leading to the possibility of their release into environments and the exposure to humans and other organisms. However, the genotoxicity of GFNs on DNA remains largely unknown. In this review, we highlight the interactions between DNA and GFNs and summarize the mechanisms of genotoxicity induced by GFNs. Generally, the genotoxicity can be sub-classified into direct genotoxicity and indirect genotoxicity. The direct genotoxicity (e.g., direct physical nucleus and DNA damage) and indirect genotoxicity mechanisms (e.g., physical destruction, oxidative stress, epigenetic toxicity, and DNA replication) of GFNs were summarized in the manuscript, respectively. Moreover, the influences factors, such as physicochemical properties, exposure dose, and time, on the genotoxicity of GFNs are also briefly discussed. Given the important role of genotoxicity in GFNs exposure risk assessment, future research should be conducted on the following: (1) developing reliable testing methods; (2) elucidating the response mechanisms associated with genotoxicity in depth; and (3) enriching the evaluation database regarding the type of GFNs, applied dosages, and exposure times.
Highlights
reactive oxygen species (ROS) induced by graphene oxide (GO) seemed to be the main mechanism leading to human lung fibroblast (HLF) cells of genotoxicity [86]
Chronic inflammation can induce secondary genotoxicity, which is manifested in the accumulation of reactive oxygen species, after Graphene family nanomaterials (GFNs) exposed to cells [43,105]
The genotoxicity of GFNs is greatly varied in the literature, which can be attributed to numerous factors including physicochemical properties, dose, test species, exposure time, and exposure assay [80,118]
Summary
Publisher’s Note: MDPI stays neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations. A two-dimensional crystal repeatedly peeled from graphite, is a single layer of carbon atoms with a sp2 -hybridized structure (Figure 1a) [1,2]. GQDs are similar to graphene but have unique zero-dimensional structures due to their nanoscale sized lateral dimensions (Figure 1d) [9]. Many studies have shown that adverse effects can be induced by GFNs in vivo and in vitro, such as organ (e.g., lung, liver, and spleen) toxicity, cytotoxicity, immunotoxicity, neurotoxicity, and reproductive and developmental toxicity [3,39]. The toxicity mechanisms of GFNs to organisms, including physical destruction, oxidative stress, inflammatory response, apoptosis, Nanomaterials 2021, 11, 2889. The toxicity mechanisms of GFNs to organisms, including physical destruction, oxidative stress, inflammatory response, apoptosis, andare necrosis, are summarized.
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