Toxicity of silver and gold nanoparticles on marine microalgae

•Agglomeration/aggregation and settling are common fate for most of nanoparticles.•Toxicity of metallic nanoparticles on microalgae are lower than from metallic ions, with few exceptions.•Toxicity data (EC50) for silver nanoparticles ranges in five orders of magnitude.•Behaviour of silver, gold and silver–gold nanoparticles in marine environment is different from freshwater environment.•There is lack of information about nanoparticles effect on benthic microalgae.

The increased use of nanomaterials in several novel industrial applications during the last decade has led to a rise in concerns about the potential toxic effects of released engineered nanoparticles (NPs) into the environment, as their potential toxicity to aquatic organisms is just beginning to be recognised. Toxicity of metallic nanoparticles to aquatic organisms, including microalgae, seems to be related to their physical and chemical properties, as well as their behaviour in the aquatic media where processes of dissolution, aggregation and agglomeration can occur. Although the production of these particles has increased considerably in recent years, data on their toxicity on microalgae, especially those belonging to marine or estuarine environments remain scarce and scattered. The literature shows a wide variation of results on toxicity, mainly due to the different methodology used in bioassays involving microalgae. These can range for up to EC50 data, in the case of AgNPs, representing five orders of magnitude. The importance of initial cellular density is also addressed in the text, as well as the need for keeping test conditions as close as possible to environmental conditions, in order to increase their environmental relevance. This review focuses on the fate and toxicity of silver, gold, and gold–silver alloy nanoparticles on microalgae, as key organisms in aquatic ecosystems. It is prompted by their increased production and use, and taking into account that oceans and estuaries are the final sink for those NPs. The design of bioassays and further research in the field of microalgae nanoecotoxicology is discussed, with a brief survey on newly developed technology of green (algae mediated) production of Ag, Au and Ag–Au bimetallic NPs, as well as some final considerations about future research on this field.

Graphical abstractFigure optionsDownload full-size imageDownload as PowerPoint slide