Alexandre Pacheco, Alexandra Martins, Lúcia Guilhermino,

Toxicological interactions induced by chronic exposure to gold nanoparticles and microplastics
mixtures in Daphnia magna,

Science of The Total Environment,
Volumes 628–629,
2018,
Pages 474-483,
ISSN 0048-9697,

Abstract:

The effects of emerging environmental contaminants on human and environmental health is of high concern, especially those potentially induced by mixtures. The main goal of the present study was to assess the chronic effects of mixtures of citrate stabilized ≈5 nm gold nanoparticles (AuNP) and 1–5μm microplastics (MP) on Daphnia magna.
A 21-day bioassay was carried out. The effect criteria were parental mortality, somatic growth and several reproductive parameters. AuNP induced parental mortality, reduced the total offspring and caused immobile juveniles and aborted eggs. MP induced parental mortality, delayed the first brood release, decreased the number of broods released, the total offspring, and caused immobile juveniles. All the
mixtures caused higher toxicity than AuNP and MP alone. Based on parental mortality, evidences of antagonism between AuNP and MP were observed at low concentrations of both mixture components, whereas
evidences of synergism at high concentrations were found.
Chronic (21-day) exposure of D. magna to AuNPs, MP, and their mixtures can impair development, reproduction, ultimately leading to death.

https://drive.google.com/open?id=1feyLRjOT9_UMlyAvJ_4FCLZKfp2lCk-L

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.02.081.(http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0048969718304716)