Soil properties can evoke toxicity of copper oxide nanoparticles towards springtails at low concentrations. (1st February 2021)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Fischer, Jonas; Evlanova, Anna; Philippe, Allan; Filser, Juliane
• Is Part Of: Environmental pollution. Volume 270(2021)
• Publication Date: 2021-02-01
• Subjects: Copper oxide nanoparticles -- Soil texture -- Folsomia candida -- Ecotoxicity -- Bioaccumulation -- sp-ICP-MS; CECeff effective cation exchange capacity -- CuO-NP copper oxide nanoparticles -- HDD hydrodynamic diameter -- MNP metal-based nanoparticles -- SDW soil dry weight -- sp-ICP-MS single particle inductively coupled mass spectroscopy -- WHCmax maximum water holding capacity; Pollution -- Periodicals; Pollution -- Environmental aspects -- Periodicals; Environmental Pollution -- Periodicals; Pollution -- Périodiques; Pollution -- Aspect de l'environnement -- Périodiques; Pollution -- Effets physiologiques -- Périodiques; Pollution; Pollution -- Environmental aspects; Periodicals; Electronic journals; 363.73
• DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2020.116084
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0269-7491

Abstract

Abstract: Copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO-NP) are used as an efficient alternative to conventional Cu in agriculture and might end up in soils. They show a high toxicity towards cells and microorganisms, but only low toxicity towards soil invertebrates. However, most existing soil ecotoxicological studies were conducted in a sandy reference soil and at test concentrations ≥100 mg Cu/kg soil. Therefore, there is a knowledge gap concerning the effect of soil texture on the toxicity of CuO-NP at lower, more realistic test concentrations. In our study, a sandy reference soil and three loamy soils were spiked with CuO-NP at up to four concentrations, ranging from 5 to 158 mg Cu/kg. We investigated 28-day reproduction as well as weight and Cu content after 14-day bioaccumulation and subsequent 14-day elimination for the springtail Folsomia candida . For the first time we analysed the size distribution of CuO-NP in aqueous test soil extracts by single particle-ICP-MS which revealed that the diameter of CuO-NP significantly increased with increasing concentration, but did not vary between test soils. Negative effects on reproduction were only observed in loamy soils, most pronounced in a loamy-acidic soil (−61%), and they were always strongest at the lowest test concentration. The observed effects were much stronger than reported by other studies performed with sandy soils and higher CuO-NP concentrations. In the same soil and concentration, a moderate impact on growth (−28%) was observed, while Cu elimination from springtails was inhibited. Rather than Cu body concentration, the diameter of the CuO-NP taken up, as well as NP-clay interactions might play a crucial role regarding their toxicity. Our study reports for the first time toxic effects of CuO-NP towards a soil invertebrate at a low, realistic concentration range. The results strongly suggest including lower test concentrations and a range of soil types in nanotoxicity testing. Graphical abstract: Image 1 Highlights: Copper oxide nanoparticles were toxic at field-realistic concentrations in soil Effects towards springtails occurred only in loamy soils with high clay content Copper uptake and elimination varied with soil type and concentration The size of particles in pore waters increased with increasing test concentrations Abstract : Copper oxide nanoparticles were toxic towards springtails in loamy soils at comparably low test concentrations, probably due to NP-clay interactions and reduced NP agglomeration.