Impact of silver nanoparticles on hepatic enzymes and thyroid hormones in striped catfish, Pangasianodon hypophthalmus (Pisces: Pangasiidae)

Abstract

Nanotechnology is the exploitation of physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of the particles with less than 100 nanometers in size. The most of the produced nanoparticles (56%) are composed of silver. The high consumption of these materials in industry and household products has led to their frequent release in aquatic ecosystems. The median lethal concentration (LC50) and the impact of silver nanoparticles on liver enzymes (ALP, LDH, AST, ALT) and thyroid hormones (T4 and T3) in Pangasius hypophthalamus wereinvestigated in the present study in three steps: At first, OECD (The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) protocols were used to determine the fatal levels of the silver nanoparticles (Ag NPs) in striped catfish. Second, semi-lethal concentration was found as 37.32 µg L-1 via regression test. In the last step, 168 fish received 0, 3.37, 7.46, 18.66 µg l-1 Ag NPs with three replicate. Six fish were randomly selected after 14 days from each replicate. Whole fish body extraction was used to measure the liver enzymes and thyroid hormones. The results suggested that due to the lower LC50 of Ag NPs in striped catfish, this species is more susceptible compared to various other fish species. Exposure to the silver nanoparticles with different concentrations significantly increased the levels of liver enzymes (ALP, LDH, AST, ALT) and also significantly decreased the T3, but no effect on T4.