Abstract

Manufactured nanoparticles of aluminum oxide (nano-alumina) have been widely used in the environment; however, their potential toxicity provides a growing concern for human health. The present study focuses on the hypothesis that nano-alumina can affect the blood-brain barrier and induce endothelial toxicity. In the first series of experiments, human brain microvascular endothelial cells (HBMEC) were exposed to alumina and control nanoparticles in dose- and time-responsive manners. Treatment with nano-alumina markedly reduced HBMEC viability, altered mitochondrial potential, increased cellular oxidation, and decreased tight junction protein expression as compared to control nanoparticles. Alterations of tight junction protein levels were prevented by cellular enrichment with glutathione. In the second series of experiments, rats were infused with nano-alumina at the dose of 29 mg/kg and the brains were stained for expression of tight junction proteins. Treatment with nano-alumina resulted in a marked fragmentation and disruption of integrity of claudin-5 and occludin. These results indicate that cerebral vasculature can be affected by nano-alumina. In addition, our data indicate that alterations of mitochondrial functions may be the underlying mechanism of nano-alumina toxicity.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

12-2008

Notes/Citation Information

Published in the Journal of Neuroimmune Pharmacology, v. 3, no. 4, p. 286-295.

© Springer Science + Business Media, LLC 2008.

The copyright holders have granted the permission for posting the article here.

The document available for download is the authors' post-peer-review final draft of the article. The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11481-008-9131-5

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11481-008-9131-5

Funding Information

Supported in part by Kentucky Science and Engineering Foundation (KSEF-07-RDE-010), P42 ES 07380, MH63022, MH072567, and NS39254.

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