Effects of titanium dioxide nanoparticles on the intestine, liver, and kidney of Danio rerio.

Abstract Titanium dioxide nanoparticles (Np-TiO2) have become the common component of sunscreen cosmetic products. Np-TiO2 can affect especially aquatic ecosystems health, including aquatic organisms such as fish. It is therefore necessary to acquire a better understanding of the effect of Np-TiO2 on aquatic organisms. This study evaluated the biological effects of Np-TiO2 on Danio rerio, such as survival rate and weight change and, in particular, the Ti content or retention in the intestine and liver, as well as the activities of catalase and superoxide dismutase enzymes. In addition, the structure of the intestine, kidney, and liver was investigated through histological analysis. Ninety zebrafish were used, randomly divided into three treatment-groups: a control group (fed with food without adding Np-TiO2) and two groups of fish fed with food containing Np-TiO2 exposed for 7 and 14 days. The amount of Ti in the liver and intestine was measured using atomic absorption spectrophotometry coupled to a graphite furnace (GFAAS). Morphological analysis and enzyme catalase and superoxide dismutase assays were likewise performed. Ti was detected in all fish even in control group; probably Ti must have been introduced during production by the fish food industry. Structural changes were detected in fish fed with Np-TiO2 as vacuolization and disruption of the apical cytoplasm of epithelial cells that covered the intestinal villi. Although kidney morphology appeared intact, the lumen of the proximal tubule was enlarged, and the cells of the distal tubule were vacuolated. No morphological changes in the liver were detected; however, superoxide dismutase activity decreased, suggesting that liver changes occurred at the molecular level. Thus, Np-TiO2 causes morphological changes in the intestine, kidney, and liver of zebrafish and biochemical changes in the liver exposed for 7 and 14 days. Although not highly lethal, Np-TiO2 in the food chain can interfere with the morphophysiology of aquatic organisms. Neither mortalities nor body weight losses were recorded among fish in all groups over the duration of the experiment.