Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41680963›Full record

ArticleEnvironmental analysis, health and toxicology2025

Purinergic system dysregulation and depression: The neuroinflammatory impact of silica nanoparticles.

Khadija Boukholda, Bakhta Aouey, Melania Guerrero-Hue, Eman Elbayoumi, Fatma Boukholda, Yassine Chtourou, Bernd L Fiebich, Juan Antonio Moreno, Hamadi Fetoui

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Environmental analysis, health and toxicology, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
0citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

0 citing papers in PubMed.

No citing paper in PubMed yet.

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Khadija BoukholdaLaboratory of Toxicology-Microbiology and Environmental Health (17ES06), Faculty of Sciences of Sfax, University of Sfax, BP1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia.
Bakhta AoueyLaboratory of Toxicology-Microbiology and Environmental Health (17ES06), Faculty of Sciences of Sfax, University of Sfax, BP1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia.
Melania Guerrero-HueMaimonides Biomedical Research Institute of Cordoba (IMIBIC), UGC Nephrology, Hospital Universitario Reina Sofía, 14004 Córdoba, Spain.
Eman ElbayoumiDepartment of Neurobiology, Center for Neurotrauma, Multiomics & Biomarkers, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.
Fatma BoukholdaLaboratory of Toxicology-Microbiology and Environmental Health (17ES06), Faculty of Sciences of Sfax, University of Sfax, BP1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia.
Yassine ChtourouLaboratory of Toxicology-Microbiology and Environmental Health (17ES06), Faculty of Sciences of Sfax, University of Sfax, BP1171, 3000 Sfax, Tunisia.
Bernd L FiebichNeurochemistry and Neuroimmunology Research Group, Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Medical Center-University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Hauptstrasse 5, 79104 Freiburg, Germany.
Juan Antonio MorenoMaimonides Biomedical Research Institute of Cordoba (IMIBIC), UGC Nephrology, Hospital Universitario Reina Sofía, 14004 Córdoba, Spain.
Hamadi FetouiDepartment of Neurobiology, Center for Neurotrauma, Multiomics & Biomarkers, Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

Funding

Kingdom of Morocco Ministry of National Education and Vocational Training 20/PRD-10Tunisian Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a neuropsychiatric condition linked to neurotransmitter imbalances, neuroinflammation, and purinergic signaling dysregulation. Emerging evidence suggests that environmental pollutants, such as silica nanoparticles (SiNPs), contribute to neuroinflammatory responses and depressive-like behaviors, though the mechanisms remain unclear. This study investigates the effects of repeated SiNP exposure on depressive-like behaviors and purinergic signaling in the hippocampus of adult male rats. Thirty-six Wistar rats were divided into three groups (control, low-dose SiNP, high-dose SiNP) and received intraperitoneal injections for 28 days. Depressive-like behaviors were assessed using the Forced Swimming Test (FST) and Tail Suspension Test (TST), while the enzymatic activities of ectonucleotidases (E-NTPDase, E-NPP, and ecto-5'-nucleotidase) and ATPase function were measured in hippocampal tissue. Gene expression of purinergic receptors (A2A, P2X7, P2Y2) and ectonucleotidases (CD73, NTPDase 1-3) was analyzed via RT-qPCR, with immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence assessing CD73 and CD90 protein levels. SiNP exposure significantly increased immobility time in both behavioral tests, indicating depressive-like behavior. It also upregulated ectonucleotidase activity, purinergic receptors (A2A, P2X7, P2Y2), and CD73/CD90 expression, while disrupting ATPase function by decreasing both Na⁺/K⁺-ATPase and Ca²⁺-ATPase activities. These findings suggest that SiNPs induce depressive-like behavior through purinergic pathway dysregulation, promoting neuroinflammation and neurotransmission alterations. Further studies are needed to explore purinergic signaling as a potential therapeutic target in depression.

Indexed as

ATPaseDepressionEctonucleotidasesHippocampusNeuroinflammationPurinergic signalingSilica nanoparticles

Identifiers

PMID41680963
PMCPMC12901816

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.