Rhodium and iridium salts inhibit proliferation and induce DNA damage in rat fibroblasts in vitro

Environmental concentration of the platinum group elements is increased in the last years due to their use in automobile catalytic converters. Limited data are available on the effects of such elements at a cellular level and on their toxicity, especially for rhodium and iridium which have been more recently introduced in use.The toxic effects of rhodium and iridium salts were analyzed on a normal diploid rat fibroblast cell line in vitro. Both salts halted cell growth in a dose- and time-dependent fashion by inhibiting cell cycle progression, inducing apoptosis and modulating the expression of cell cycle regulatory proteins. In fact, they both caused an accumulation of cells in the G2/M phase of the cell cycle and affected the expression levels of pRb, cyclins D1 and E, p21Waf1 and p27Kip1. DNA strand breaks, as assessed by comet test, and an increase in the intracellular levels of reactive oxygen species also occurred in exposed cell cultures.These findings suggest a potential toxicity of both iridium and rhodium salts and emphasize the need for further studies to understand their effects at a cellular level to enable a better assessment of their toxic effects and to identify ways for their modulation and/or prevention.

► Limited data are available regarding in vitro toxic effects of rhodium and iridium. ► The potential toxic effects of rhodium and iridium salts were assessed on rat fibroblasts in vitro. ► Both salts halted cell growth in a dose- and time-dependent fashion by inhibiting cell cycle. ► Both salts induced apoptosis, DNA strand breaks and increase of intracellular ROS.