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Published on: May 13, 2020
Computational multiscale toxicodynamic modeling of silver and carbon nanoparticle effects on mouse lung function
Dwaipayan Mukherjee1, Danielle Botelho, Andrew J Gow
1Department of Environmental and Occupational Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, United States of America ; Department of Chemical and Biochemical Engineering, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, United States of America.
A new computational model predicts lung effects from engineered nanomaterials (ENMs). It links nanoparticle properties to cellular responses and lung function changes in mice, showing good agreement with experimental data.
Area of Science:
- Computational toxicology
- Nanomaterial safety assessment
- Pulmonary research
Background:
- Engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) pose potential risks to lung health.
- Existing models often lack multiscale integration for predicting toxicodynamic effects.
- Understanding nanoparticle interactions with lung cells and surfactant is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a multiscale toxicodynamic model for predicting pulmonary effects of ENMs.
- To quantify the relationship between ENM properties and lung responses.
- To link cellular-level dynamics to tissue-level lung function changes.
Main Methods:
- Developed a computational, multiscale toxicodynamic model with coupled modules.
- Incorporated alveolar cells (type I, type II, macrophages) and surfactant dynamics.
- Explicitly considered nanoparticle properties (size, surface chemistry, zeta potential).
Main Results:
- Model predictions aligned with observed changes in mouse lung surfactant composition over 7 days.
- Model accurately predicted trends in mouse lung function following ENM exposure.
- Demonstrated good agreement between model outputs and in vivo experimental data for silver and carbon nanoparticles.
Conclusions:
- The developed multiscale model effectively quantifies and predicts pulmonary effects of ENMs.
- The model successfully links nanoparticle characteristics to biological responses and lung function.
- This computational approach offers a valuable tool for nanomaterial risk assessment.
