ABSTRACT
During the development of nanotechnology, the production of many substances containing nanoparticles leads to the release of various nanoparticles into the environment, including the water ecosystem. The main goal of the current research was to study the ultrastructural characteristics of the entry and bioaccumulation of Fe3O4 nanoparticles in the small intestine of Cyprinus carpio (Linnaeus, 1758), as well as the pathomorphological changes in the fish organism. Two different doses (10 and 100 mg) of Fe3O4 nanoparticles were fed to fingerlings for 7 days and then intestinal samples were taken and studied. It was found that the extent of damages was boosted within the increment of nanoparticle concentration. The sequence and bioaccumulation of Fe3O4 nanoparticles in the small intestine of fish occurred as below: firstly, the nanoparticles passed into microvilli located in the apical part of enterocytes in the mucosa layer, from there into the cytoplasm of the epithelial cells, including cytoplasmatic organelles (nucleus, mitochondria, lysosomes, fat granules), and then into a lamina propria of the mucosa of the small intestine and passed into the endothelium of the blood vessels and to the erythrocytes of the vessels which located in the lumen. It was determined that although the nanoparticles were up to 30 nm in size, only particles with a maximum size of 20 nm could penetrate the intestinal wall. Thus, the release of Fe3O4 nanoparticles into the environment in high doses has a negative effect on the living ecosystem, including the body of fish living in the water.
