Cyto-Genotoxic Impacts of Antimony Tin Oxide (ATO) Nanoparticles on Allium cepa Root Meristem Cells: An Integrative Experimental and in Silico Approach
Abstract
In this study, antimony tin oxide (ATO) nanoparticles (NPs) were evaluated for their cyto-genotoxic effects on Allium cepa root tips, as their widespread use in industrial and electronic applications raises concerns about possible environmental release and biological hazards that remain largely unexplored. The ATO NPs were characterized using high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), and X-ray diffraction (XRD), confirming high structural uniformity and crystallinity. Root tips were exposed to 12.5, 25, 50, and 100 μg/mL of ATO NPs for 4 h, and cyto-genotoxicity was assessed using the Allium anaphase-telophase and alkaline comet assays. ATO NPs caused a significant concentration-dependent decrease in mitotic index (MI) and an increase in chromosomal aberrations (CAs) such as laggards, bridges, stickiness, and polyploidy along with DNA damage, indicating suppressed cell division and genotoxic potential of ATO NPs in plant cells, respectively. SEM and TEM analysis also revealed morphological alterations in treated roots compared to controls. In computational docking, the ATO NP showed more favorable predicted affinities against the colchicine-binding site of the tubulin heterodimer (ΔG = -11.06 kcal/mol) and the synthetic B-DNA dodecamer (ΔG = -12.07 kcal/mol) than colchicine and methylmethanesulfonate (MMS), respectively, suggesting a possible dual genotoxic pathway involving microtubule perturbation and DNA…
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