Perinatal exposure to silver nanoparticles reprograms immunometabolism and promotes pancreatic beta-cell death and kidney damage in mice

Abstract

Silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) are extensively utilized in food, cosmetics, and healthcare products. Though the effects of AgNPs exposure on adults are well documented, the long-term effects of gestational/perinatal exposure upon the health of offspring have not been addressed. Herein, we show that only perinatal exposure to AgNPs through the mother could lead to chronic inflammation in offspring which persists till adulthood. Further, AgNPs exposure altered offspring’s immune responses against environmental stresses. AgNPs exposed offspring showed an altered response in splenocyte proliferation assay when challenged to lipopolysaccharide, concanavalin-A, AgNPs, or silver ions. Perinatal AgNPs exposure affected metabolic parameters (resistin, glucagon-like peptide-1, leptin, insulin) and upregulated JNK/P38/ERK signaling in the pancreas. We observed pancreatic damage, reduced insulin level, and increased blood glucose levels. Further, we observed renal damage, particularly to tubular and glomerular regions as indicated by histopathology and electron microscopy. Our study thus shows that only perinatal exposure to AgNPs could induce persistent inflammation, alter immune responses against foreign antigens and metabolism which may contribute to pancreatic and renal damage later in life.

Keywords:

• Perinatal exposure
• silver nanoparticles
• inflammation
• metabolic alterations

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge Prof. Alok Dhawan, Director CSIR-IITR (CSIR-Indian Institute of Toxicology Research) for the overall support and facilities provided for this research. The institutional communication number of the manuscript is 3669.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

The work was supported by Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).