Comparative Effects of Ionic and Nanoparticulate Silver on Nematodes C. elegans and Mice

The increasing use of silver nanoparticles (SNPs) in various fields of human activity concerns about their potential toxicity, particularly for invertebrates that absorb substances through their body surface and for terrestrial mammals. This study focuses on the interference of abiogenic silver with copper metabolism. This is due to the fact that Ag1+ and Cu1+ are isoelectronic, silver ions can be recognized by copper transporters and erroneously incorporated into essential cuproenzymes, thereby impairing their function. We conducted a comparative analysis of the biological effects of ionic silver (from AgNO3) and nanoparticulate silver (30–40 nm spherical SNPs) on both wild-type Caenorhabditis elegans and a mutant strain with impaired copper excretion, as well as on the copper status in the serum of laboratory mice. The results revealed that SNPs exert greater toxicity in nematodes, particularly in those with disrupted copper homeostasis, whereas ionic silver posed a higher potential risk to mice. The findings highlight the need for cautious evaluation of SNPs in biomedical applications.