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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Ithaca, New York » Robert W. Holley Center for Agriculture & Health » Plant, Soil and Nutrition Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #359867
Title: ZnO nanoparticles affect nutrient transport in an in vitro model of the small intestine

Author
item Tako, Elad
item MAHLER, GRETCHEN - Binghamton University
item OLIVAS, FABIOLA - Binghamton University

Submitted to: Food and Chemical Toxicology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 11/21/2018
Publication Date: 11/29/2018
Citation: Tako, E.N., Mahler, G., Olivas, F.M. 2018. ZnO nanoparticles affect nutrient transport in an in vitro model of the small intestine. Food and Chemical Toxicology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2018.11.048.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.fct.2018.11.048

Interpretive Summary: Nano-sized zinc oxide (ZnO) is present in food packaging, putting consumers at risk of ingestion. There is little information on the amount of ZnO nanoparticles (NP) present in food packaging and the effects of ZnO NP ingestion on intestinal function. The highlights of the current study are: (1) Digested ZnO NP significantly decreased glucose transport in an cellular model. (2) Digested ZnO NP decreased the cellular surface area covered with microvilli. (3) High doses of ZnO NP decreased Fe transport in a small intestine model. (4) Pro-inflammatory gene IL8 was upregulated following exposure to high doses of ZnO NP.

Technical Abstract: Nano-sized zinc oxide (ZnO) is present in food packaging, putting consumers at risk of ingestion. There is little information on the amount of ZnO nanoparticles (NP) present in food packaging and the effects of ZnO NP ingestion on intestinal function. To estimate physiologically relevant ZnO NP exposures from food that are commonly packaged with ZnO NP, food samples were analyzed with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). An in vitro model of the small intestine was used to investigate the effects of ZnO NP exposure. Cells were exposed to pristine NP in culture medium and to NP subjected to an in vitro digestion process to better reflect the transformation that the NP undergo in the human gastrointestinal (GI) tract. The findings show that a physiologically relevant dose of ZnO NP can cause a significant decrease in glucose transport, which is consistent with gene expression changes for the basolateral glucose transporter GLUT2. There is also evidence that the ZnO NP affect the microvilli of the intestinal cells, therefore reducing the amount of surface area available to absorb nutrients. These results suggest that the ingestion of ZnO NP can alter nutrient absorption in an in vitro model of the human small intestine.