Update on pulmono-, hepato-, and cardiotoxicity of nanoparticles in vivo: a literature review

A wide use of nanoparticles (NPs) in various industries, agriculture, science, medicine and cosmetology, as well as their omnipresence in the environment necessitate a comprehensive study of their effects on living systems to predict health risks and develop preventive measures. In this study, we aimed to study and systematize available scientific evidence of toxic effects of nanoparticles on the lungs, liver, and heart.
The search for publications issued in 2022–2024 was carried out in Russian (eLIBRARY.RU) and foreign (PubMed, Google Scholar) databases and electronic libraries. Articles containing information on health effects of particles in the 1–100 nanometer range were eligible for inclusion in the review while descriptions of in vitro, in silico, and epidemiological studies were excluded. Of more than 150 articles screened, we selected 31 full-text in vivo study publications (including one preprint) and 18 articles describing the identified effects.

Toxic effects of nanoparticles are attributed to their unique properties and depend on numerous factors, including chemical composition, size, and shape of nanoparticles, their concentration, exposure duration, and ability to cross internal barriers of the body. Adverse effects of nanoparticles are observed at all structural levels of the organism. Nanoparticles mainly induce inflammatory, dystrophic and necrotic changes. Closely interrelated inflammation and oxidative stress are the main mechanisms of toxicity.

Assessment and analysis of an array of experimental studies on potential risks of nanoparticle exposure at various structural levels make it possible to identify minute changes in organs for further development of a system of preventive measures aimed at increasing resistance to such NP-mediated pathological effects.