Single-cell ICP-MS for evaluating the Se-protective effect against MeHg^+-induced neurotoxicity in human neuroblastoma cell line (SH-SY5Y)

The protective effect of selenium (Se) against Hg-induced neurotoxicity has been widely investigated; however, the mechanisms behind this interaction have not been fully elucidated yet. In the current work, the role of Se against MeHg^+-induced cytotoxicity in the human neuroblastoma cell line (SH-SY5Y) is reported for the first time by tracking Hg uptake and accumulation at the single-cell level by inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry in single-cell mode (SC-ICP-MS). The influence of different Se species (SeMet, SeMeSeCys, citrate-SeNPs, and chitosan-SeNPs) on MeHg^+ cytotoxicity was evaluated by 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assays. SeMet and SeMeSeCys exhibited protective effects against MeHg^+-induced cell death, particularly at high MeHg^+ concentrations (LC₅0). In addition, chitosan-SeNPs showed greater protection compared to citrate-SeNPs when co-exposed with MeHg^+. Interestingly, SC-ICP-MS unveiled the heterogeneous distribution of Hg uptake by SH-SY5Y cells. Co-exposure of SeMet and SeMeSeCys with MeHg^+ led to a reduction of the amount of Hg accumulated per individual cell, which decreased the maximum level of Hg per cell by half (from 60 fg Hg cell⁻¹ to 30 fg Hg cell⁻¹) when SeMet was present, along with a decrease in the percentage of cells that accumulated the highest quantity of MeHg^+. All these data corroborate the protective role of Se against Hg toxicity at the cellular level.Zum Volltext