Nanoparticles in Food can Harm Liver

Nanoparticles found in food and beverages might damage liver and other organs, a new study has found.

Researchers at the Cornell University say that these particles are beneficial, but in the long run, these tiny particles might harm liver.

The scientists used microfluidic systems to study the potential harms of nanoparticles. They found that these particles injured liver cells. The damage was worse when the team used two organ systems.

Mandy Esch from the Cornell University worked with Michael Shuler, the Samuel B. Eckert Professor of Chemical Engineering, in the study. Shuler's lab makes "body-on-a-chip" microfluidics. These chips have compartments that hold cell cultures.

For the study, the researchers used 50-nanometer carboxylated polystyrene nanoparticles. These particles are found in several food products and are considered an inert material.

"We are looking at the effects of what are considered to be harmless nanoparticles in humans," Esch said. "These particles are not necessarily lethal, but ... are there other consequences? We're looking at the non-lethal consequences."

The human intestinal compartment that the team made for this research had cells from different organs. The researchers used fluorescently labeled nanoparticles and watched them move in the cell cultures.

The team found that the nanoparticles penetrated the liver cells and these cells released aspartate transaminase, which occurs usually during cell death or damage.

The researchers said that how or why these particles were entering the cells remains unclear. What is known though is that the structure of these materials is helping them pass the gastrointestinal barrier. The team says that modifying nanoparticle structure might be one way of preventing these particles from entering the cells.

"The motivation behind this study was twofold: one, to show that multi-organ, in vitro systems give us more information when testing for the interaction of a substance with the human body, and two ... to look at nanoparticles because they have a huge potential for medicine, yet adverse effects have not been studied in detail yet," Esch said in a news release.

The study is published in the journal Lab on a Chip. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health supported the research.