{"title":"Functionalized silver nanoparticles enable efficient mercury removal and toxicity reduction toward microalgae.","authors":"Arianna Bellingeri, Andrea Calantropio, Iole Venditti, Davide Baroni, Fabrizio Monaci, Ilaria Corsi","doi":"10.1080/17435390.2025.2612239","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Water pollution, caused by human activities, is a major environmental and health concern. Among heavy metal pollutants, mercury (Hg) is recognized as one of the most persistent and bioaccumulative, while being also highly toxic for human health. Heavy metal removal from water presents significant challenges, and nanotechnology provides a promising solution through cost-effective, efficient, and reusable adsorption or immobilization. Silver nanoparticles functionalized with citrate and L-cysteine (AgNPcitLcys) have been specifically designed to remove Hg ions from water along with a negligible ecotoxicological impact to aquatic life. The present study aims to assess the efficacy of Hg removal from water by AgNPcitLcys through and ecotoxicity approach using the freshwater microalga <i>Raphidocelis subcapitata</i> and the marine water microalga <i>Dunaliella tertiolecta.</i> AgNPcitLcys showed low ecotoxicity to both microalgae, even though at high concentrations (10 mg/L) <i>D. tertiolecta</i> suffered a 40% inhibition of growth. Hg removal was highly efficient in marine water medium (99.26%) compared to freshwater (63.07%), regardless of the concentration of Hg. Despite removal in both media, Hg toxicity was successfully reduced by AgNPcitLcys only for <i>D. tertiolecta</i>. AgNPcitLcys showed to successfully work in a complex aquatic medium such as seawater, confirming their potentiality to be applied in real scenarios of water pollution by Hg.</p>","PeriodicalId":18899,"journal":{"name":"Nanotoxicology","volume":" ","pages":"106-115"},"PeriodicalIF":3.6000,"publicationDate":"2026-02-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Nanotoxicology","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/17435390.2025.2612239","RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2026/1/18 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"NANOSCIENCE & NANOTECHNOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Water pollution, caused by human activities, is a major environmental and health concern. Among heavy metal pollutants, mercury (Hg) is recognized as one of the most persistent and bioaccumulative, while being also highly toxic for human health. Heavy metal removal from water presents significant challenges, and nanotechnology provides a promising solution through cost-effective, efficient, and reusable adsorption or immobilization. Silver nanoparticles functionalized with citrate and L-cysteine (AgNPcitLcys) have been specifically designed to remove Hg ions from water along with a negligible ecotoxicological impact to aquatic life. The present study aims to assess the efficacy of Hg removal from water by AgNPcitLcys through and ecotoxicity approach using the freshwater microalga Raphidocelis subcapitata and the marine water microalga Dunaliella tertiolecta. AgNPcitLcys showed low ecotoxicity to both microalgae, even though at high concentrations (10 mg/L) D. tertiolecta suffered a 40% inhibition of growth. Hg removal was highly efficient in marine water medium (99.26%) compared to freshwater (63.07%), regardless of the concentration of Hg. Despite removal in both media, Hg toxicity was successfully reduced by AgNPcitLcys only for D. tertiolecta. AgNPcitLcys showed to successfully work in a complex aquatic medium such as seawater, confirming their potentiality to be applied in real scenarios of water pollution by Hg.
期刊介绍：
Nanotoxicology invites contributions addressing research relating to the potential for human and environmental exposure, hazard and risk associated with the use and development of nano-structured materials. In this context, the term nano-structured materials has a broad definition, including ‘materials with at least one dimension in the nanometer size range’. These nanomaterials range from nanoparticles and nanomedicines, to nano-surfaces of larger materials and composite materials. The range of nanomaterials in use and under development is extremely diverse, so this journal includes a range of materials generated for purposeful delivery into the body (food, medicines, diagnostics and prosthetics), to consumer products (e.g. paints, cosmetics, electronics and clothing), and particles designed for environmental applications (e.g. remediation). It is the nano-size range if these materials which unifies them and defines the scope of Nanotoxicology .
While the term ‘toxicology’ indicates risk, the journal Nanotoxicology also aims to encompass studies that enhance safety during the production, use and disposal of nanomaterials. Well-controlled studies demonstrating a lack of exposure, hazard or risk associated with nanomaterials, or studies aiming to improve biocompatibility are welcomed and encouraged, as such studies will lead to an advancement of nanotechnology. Furthermore, many nanoparticles are developed with the intention to improve human health (e.g. antimicrobial agents), and again, such articles are encouraged. In order to promote quality, Nanotoxicology will prioritise publications that have demonstrated characterisation of the nanomaterials investigated.
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