Acute toxicity of TiO2, CuO and ZnO nanoparticles in brine shrimp, Artemia franciscana

The brine shrimp, Artemia spp., is widely used in ecotoxicological research as a biological index. In the present study, aquatic stability and acute toxic effects of TiO2, CuO and ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) on Artemia franciscana were investigated. Acute exposure was conducted in sea water with different concentrations of selected nanoparticles at 24h, 48h, 72h and 96h. The mortality rate of A. francisca increased significantly with increasing concentrations and duration of exposure of all NPs. The toxicity pattern of metal oxides to A. francisscana was as follows: CuO>TiO2>ZnO. Our results point to the fact that both TiO2 and ZnO NPs exhibited moderate toxicity to Artemia larvae in 24h as compared with CuO, regardless of their size and concentrations.