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699104 
Journal Article 
Dietary exposure of silver nanoparticles in the endobenthic polychate Nereis diversicolor 
García-Alonso, J; Misra, SK; Khan, FR; Dybowska, A; Smith, BD; Rainbow, PS; Luoma, SN; Valsami-Jones, E 
2010 
Yes 
Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology - Part A: Molecular and Integrative Physiology
ISSN: 1095-6433
EISSN: 1531-4332 
157 
Suppl. 1 
S53-S54 
Nanoparticles such as nanosilver (Ag-NPs) are widely used in industries such as those producing textiles, biomedical devices and washing machines. Therefore, we can expect an impact from their inevitable release into the environment. Estuarine sediments are sink for many pollutants and are also the habitat and food source of the polychaete Nereis diversicolor. Dietary exposure to NPs from sediments is a potential route of toxicity of these chemicals. We describe how ingested citrate capped Ag-NPs (30 ± 5 nm) behave inside the gut, the metal uptake and its accumulation. We test if uptake is due to direct internalisation of particles or by solubilisation of the particles and subsequent uptake of dissolved Ag. Nereis diversicolor were exposed to sediment spiked with Ag-NPs (250 ng g-1) in estuarine water (salinity 16) for 10 days at 10 °C. Electron dense particles the size of the Ag-NPs were visualized in the lumen and gut epithelium by TEM. In some cases Ag-NPs appeared to be associated with endocytotic vesicles. Silver Bioaccumulation of Ag the ragworm tissues was evidenced by concentrations in cytosolic fractions separated by homogenization and centrifugation. Alternatively, dissolved Ag could also be generated inside the gut and pass into the cells through dissolved metal uptake routes. Further methods of analysis, including energy dispersive x-ray (EDX) are in progress to confirm the direct uptake of Ag-NPs by the intestinal epithelial cells. 
Other
• Nanoscale Silver