7th International Congress on Applied Biological Sciences, November , Adana, Turkey, 1 - 02 November 2022, pp.36
Background: Iron (III)
oxide (Fe2O3) nanoparticles-NPs and microparticles-MPs
are multipurpose robust materials that are used in a wide variety of fields
from military to medical. Nevertheless, information on their genotoxic effects
is insufficient and contradictory. In this study, the genotoxic effects of Fe2O3
NPs and MPs were investigated by performing a comet assay (Single Cell
Gel Electrophoresis) in human peripheral lymphocytes.
Method: Isolated
lymphocytes were treated with 25, 125, 250, and 500 μg/mL concentrations of NPs
and MPs within 2 and 3 hours. Sterile distilled water and hydrogen peroxide was
used as negative and positive controls, respectively. DNA damages due to
genotoxicity were examined using comet assay.
Results: Three different
comet parameters were evaluated in this study: tail length, tail intensity, and
tail moment. None of the 2h applications of Fe2O3 NPs and
MPs formed significant DNA damage in lymphocytes compared to the negative
control. However, at 3h treatment, all the
concentrations of both of the particles significantly but not-dose dependently
increased tail length. In terms of tail intensity, all the tested
concentrations of Fe2O3 MPs but only the highest one (500
μg/mL) of the NPs induced a significant increase in lymphocytes. No significant
DNA damage was determined in the tail moment for all the parameters tested.
Conclusion: These results
revealed that the 3h application of both particles was more effective than the
2h treatment to induce DNA damage in nucleoids. Also, the DNA-damaging effect
of MPs was slightly higher than those of the NPs. Long-term exposure to Fe2O3
MPs looks more genotoxic than NPs for lymphocytes in vitro treatment. Aggregations of the nanoparticles and co-products
of the high dose concentrations may be the issue for these results. However,
more investigations should be conducted to determine the genotoxic potential of
these particles using different types of cells, organisms, and test systems.