The mitigating effects of N-acetylcysteine on TiO2 nanoparticles-induced toxicity: Efficacy in cytotoxicity reduction in vitro and complexity in vivo.

To investigate how the antioxidants N-Acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) and Vitamin C (Vc) exert optimal antioxidant effects to mitigate the cytotoxicity induced by titanium dioxide nanoparticles (TiO2 Nanoparticles, TNPs), this study employed human normal colon epithelial cells (NCM460), human hepatocyte L-02 cells, C57BL/6 mice and Drosophila melanogaster. In NCM460 cells experiment (48 h), results showed that TNPs+NAC co-exposure significantly inhibited malondialdehyde (MDA), enhancing total antioxidant capacity, and reducing chromosomal damage and cell death. This protective sequence was validated in L-02 cells experiment (144 h). In C57BL/6 mice, TNPs+NAC co-exposure reduced the micronucleus frequency in bone marrow polychromatic erythrocytes (PCEs), yet had no significant effect on Morris water maze behavior. Conversely, it adversely affected climbing ability in Drosophila melanogaster. Our study concludes that TNPs + NAC co-exposure effectively mitigates cytotoxicity of TNPs in vitro by enhancing antioxidant effects. However, in vivo outcomes may differ due to factors such as exposure routes and individual variations.