Assessing the genotoxicity of oral zinc oxide nanoparticle administration in male rats using micronuclei and comet assay

Assessing the genotoxicity of oral zinc oxide nanoparticle administration in male rats using micronuclei and comet assay

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) are regularly utilized in the food and fertilizers industries. In our investigation, rats received oral administration of ZnO NPs with a particle size of 30±5 nm once daily at doses of 100, 200, 300, 400, and 600 mg/kg for ten weeks in order to assess the genotoxic effect. Impacts on hematological markers, genotoxic impact, and growth were investigated. The findings showed that ZnO-NPs significantly reduced body weight gain, red blood cell count (RBC), hemoglobin concentration (Hb), hematocrit value (HCT), and platelet count (PLT), while increasing white blood cell (WBC), mean capsular volume (MCV), mean capsular hemoglobin (MCH), and mean capsular hemoglobin concentration (MCHC) in the treated rats. Our results for the comet assay and micronuclei test show a dosage-dependent increase in DNA fragmentation, which was supported by an increase in the percentage of DNA that is tailed, the length and intensity of DNA tails, and the tail moment, especially at the dose of 600 mg/kg. According to the findings, the frequency of micronucleated cells has increased.