Table 1.
Some in vivo toxicity studies of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs).
| Organism | Particle | Effects | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wistar rats | AuNPs | Traces of AuNPs in kidney, spleen, liver, intestine, urine and feces. Smaller NPs induced greater effects in DNA damage | [82] |
| Fetal organs | AuNPs | No indication of toxicity in fetus and placenta | [83] |
| Pregnant C57BL/6 mice | AuNPs | Non crossing of maternal-fetal barrier | [84] |
| Female and male mice | AuNPs | Liver and kidney damage whose effects were sex dependent | [85,86] |
| Zebrafish embryo | AuNPs (functionalized with TMATeAuNPs) | Delay in development of eyes and pigmentation | [87] |
| Rats | AuNPs | Changes in gene expression | [88,89] |
| Mice | AuNSs on GSNPs | Lungs, kidney hemorrhage, lymphocytic infiltration and inflammatory response | [[90], [91], [92]] |
| BALB/c mice | AuNPs | Apoptosis and inflammation of liver tissue | [93,94] |
| Mice | PEG-coated AuNPS | Liver damage | [95] |
| Male WU wistar rats | AuNPs | Large particles of spherical AuNPs were observed in blood, spleen and liver while smaller particles were seen in spleen, blood, thymus, lungs, liver, kidney, testis, heart, and brain | [16] |
| Female mice | AuNPs | Spherical AuNPs in live and macrophages | [96] |
| Mice (ddy) | AuNPs | AuNPs of all sizes were noticed in spleen, liver and lungs | [97] |
| Male wistar rats | AuNPs | AuNPs persist and accumulate in spleen and liver | [88,89] |
| Wistar rats | Citrate coated-AuNPs | Accumulate in neurons, liver, spleen, kidney and cross the blood brain barrier; no toxicity | [98] |
| Rats | PEG-coated AuNPs | Accumulation in spleen and liver | [99] |
| Mice | PEG-coated AuNPs | Apoptosis and acute inflammation | [100] |
| Rats | PEG-coated AuNPs | ROS-induced cytotoxicity that is size-dependent | [101] |
| Rats | AuNPs | Distribution of AuNPs were observed in testis liver and kidney. However, no effects on testis whereas mild changes were noticed in kidney and liver sections | [102] |
| Mice | GSH- and BSA-coated AuNCs | Affects kidnay function and produce toxicity | [103] |
| Broiler chicken | AuNPs | Caused recognizable oxidative damage to blood, histopathological changes, up-regulation of IL-6, expression of Nrf2 gene, fragmentation of DNA, significant decrease in antibody titer against avian influenza (AI) and newcastle disease (ND) | [104] |
| Mice | AuNPs | Damage to neuronal system | [85,86] |
| Male CD1 mice | Functionalized AuNPs | Accumulation at various parts of the brain | [105] |
| Drosophila melanogaster | Citrate capped-AuNPs | Caused transmissible mutagenic effects | [106] |
| Drosophila melanogaster | Citrate capped-AuNPs | Sharp decline in fertility and life span, presence of DNA fragments, and strong over-expression of stress proteins | [107] |
| Mice | Citrate capped-AuNPs | Greatest toxicity and affecting organ index | [12] |
| Mice | AuNPs capped with BSA and HSePEGeCOOH | Produced no effect on normal growth | [108] |
| Mice | AuNPs | Induced reduction in RBC, spleen index and body weight | [12] |
| Mice | Naked colloidal AuNPs | Caused loss of weight and appetite. However, smaller AuNPs did not produce any sickness | [109] |
| Female mice | AuNHsd | Complete survival was evident across all concentrations | [110] |
| D. magna | HAuCl4 | LC50 was reported as 2 mg/l after 48hrs | [[111], [112], [113]] |
| D. magna | HAuCl4 | LC50 was reported as 0.64 mg/l after 48hrs | [114] |
| M. macrocopa | HAuCl4 | LC50 was reported as 0.62 mg/l after 48hrs | [[111], [112], [113]] |
| T. arcticus | LC50 was 14.4 mg/l after 96hrs | [114] |