Abstract
In this research work aims at introducing the ecotoxicity and environnemental impact of gold-titania (Au-TiO2) based nanomaterials. This hybrid nanomaterial was manufactured by solvothermal process. This sweet chemistry protocol was stabilised in our laboratory to minimize the use of many reagents during the chemical reaction of nanomaterial formation. Briefly, this process involves the use only of DMSO solvent and gold-titanium precursors. The morphologie and the structure of the hybrid nanomaterial were characerized using X-ray diffraction (XRD) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The ecotoxicity of the hybrid Au-TiO2 NCs was determined in mussels Mytilus galloprovincalis exposed for 14 days to 0, 0.01, 0.1 and 1 mg of Au/TiO2 per Litre seawater using biomarkers approach. No effects was observed in Vg-like proteins, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and glutathion transferase (GST) in treated mussels with 0.01 and 0.1 mg/L of Au/TiO2 nanomaterial. However, at 1 mg/L of Au/TiO2, SOD, CAT and GST increased significantly (p < 0.05) showing the level of sensitivity of the species.