PRA 3 - Biocompliance criteria
The main objective of PRA 3 is to analyze the fundamental mechanisms of transfer, transformation and toxicity of NMs obtained by altering nano-products as described in the PRA2 and selected by the partners of the PRA1.
Exposure of human and environment to various ENMs
Modeling surface bio-reactivity (ab initio calculations)
The overall aim of this work package is to identify commonalities across NMs according to the NMs- biomolecule interactions and the consequent biological impact, and to confront the molecular modeling outcome with data generated in PRA 3-2, 3-3 and 3-4. To accomplish such a task, we perform molecular modeling on NM-biomolecule systems to identify the key mechanisms that control biological toxicity.
Contact : Laurent Charlet, ISTERRE
PRA 3.2 - Biodistribution of NMs in animals and mesocosms
NMs possess the ability to cross through biological barriers, thus impacting organs at a distance. The aim of this PRA is to characterize this phenomenon with our NMs.
Contact : Marie Carrière, LAN, CEA
PRA 3.3 - Toxicity and ecotoxicity, fate and bioaccessibility
We will first examine in vitro effects of NMs by investigating the effects of chronic effects and low doses in cells involved in :
- the defense of organs against environmental stresses (macrophages),
- the electrolytic exchanges and nutrient absorption necessary for growth and homeostasis of the organism (epithelial and hepatic cells)
- the reproductive hazard characterization (spermatogonia, spermatocytes, spermatozoa, oocytes, and follicular cells),
- in surrogate cells regarding the cancer risk consecutive to DNA damage (fibroblasts and lymphocytes).
Several key parameters of toxicity will be investigated :
- cell viability,
- inflammatory response,
- electrophysiological and cellular mechanics parameters,
- genotoxicity and modulation of DNA repair capacity,
- disruption of metal homeostasis,
- selected functional tests for different cell types (e.g. phagocytosis assays for macrophages, barrier function for epithelial gastrointestinal cells).
Contact : Sophie Lanone, INSERM
PRA 3.4 - Ecosystemic effects and tools for a life cycle approach
The mesocosms (terrestrial and aquatic) will allow to work on a complex trophic chain to facilitate the integration of the complementary approaches associated with the complex issue of exposure. We would then be able to quantify the bioavailability of NMs based on a life cycle and ecosystemic impacts.
The studies regarding the transformations and transfer in the plant rhizosphere, the water column and through the porous media are conducted in order to:
- evaluate the dynamics and mass distribution of NMs within the different compartments of aquatic mesocoms.
- evaluate the functioning of a food chain constituted by sediments, aquatic bacteria and bivalves, invertebrates, vertebrates
- study the biological effects of NM on the functioning of terrestrial ecosystem such as the rhizosphere at community levels using metagenomic approaches.
Contact : Mélanie Auffan, CEREGE
Highlight "Nature Scientific Report, 2018 : Impact of nanoparticles on the Bacillus subtitles (3610) competence " by Eymard-Vernain et al.
We here in report, for the first time, the role of nanoparticles in the physiological induction of horizontal gene transfer in bacteria.Résumé en français :
Highlight "Nature Scientific Report, 2017 by Bettini et al.
Food-grade TiO2 impairs intestinal and systemic immune homeostasis, initiates preneoplastic lesions and promotes aberrant crypt development in the rat colon.
