Abstract
The exploitation of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in biomedicine represents more than one third of their overall application. Despite their wide use and significant amount of scientific data on their effects on biological systems, detailed insight into their in vivo fate is still lacking. This study aimed to elucidate the biotransformation patterns of AgNPs following oral administration. Colloidal stability, biochemical transformation, dissolution, and degradation behaviour of different types of AgNPs were evaluated in systems modelled to represent biological environments relevant for oral administration, as well as in cell culture media and tissue compartments obtained from animal models. A multimethod approach was employed by implementing light scattering (dynamic and electrophoretic) techniques, spectroscopy (UV–vis, atomic absorption, nuclear magnetic resonance) and transmission electron microscopy. The obtained results demonstrated that AgNPs may transform very quickly during their journey through different biological conditions. They are able to degrade to an ionic form and again reconstruct to a nanoparticulate form, depending on the biological environment determined by specific body compartments. As suggested for other inorganic nanoparticles by other research groups, AgNPs fail to preserve their specific integrity in in vivo settings.
Highlights
The global consumption of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) has been steadily increasing in the last decade and estimated to reach over 200 tons/year by 2022 [1]
The Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) highlighted in its final Opinion on Colloidal Silver that insufficient data on AgNP physicochemical properties and toxicology in cosmetics hinder the health hazards caused by AgNPs [5]
The Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) raised questions on how different forms of Ag used in consumer and medical products may be related to human exposure and safety as AgNPs may undergo complex transformations in biological media [6]
Summary
The global consumption of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) has been steadily increasing in the last decade and estimated to reach over 200 tons/year by 2022 [1]. The biomedical use of AgNPs represents the largest proportion of the market share [1] encompassing antimicrobial coatings on medical devices (catheters, stents, implants), wound dressings, targeted drug delivery, cancer therapy and diagnostics (biosensing, bioimaging) [2,3]. Such prevalence has raised concerns among the regulatory authorities about the safety of AgNPs for humans due to significant lack of relevant regulatory data. The Scientific Committee on Consumer Safety (SCCS) highlighted in its final Opinion on Colloidal Silver (nano) that insufficient data on AgNP physicochemical properties and toxicology in cosmetics hinder the health hazards caused by AgNPs [5]. The Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) raised questions on how different forms of Ag used in consumer and medical products may be related to human exposure and safety as AgNPs may undergo complex transformations in biological media [6]
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