Biomaterial Database

Toxicity of extracts from disposable chopsticks, toothpicks, and paper cups on L-929 cells. 2015

Juntao Li, and Sifan Chen, and Wenxue Li, and Guangyu Yang, and Wei Zhu

Department of Toxicology, Guangzhou Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Guangzhou, Guangdong 510080, P.R. China.

OBJECTIVE To evaluate the toxicity of extracts from disposable chopsticks, toothpicks, and paper cups on L-929 cells. METHODS We followed national standards to prepare the extracts from disposable chopsticks, toothpicks, and paper cups used for the cell culture media, and the morphology of L-929 cells was observed with an optical microscope. The loss rate for adherent cells was evaluated with the trypan blue exclusion method, and cell proliferation was determined using the WST-1 assay. RESULTS Compared with the control group, the cells cultured in media containing the extracts showed signs of apoptosis and necrosis after culturing for 4 or 7 days, and the loss rate for adherent cells was significantly increased (P < 0.05). An obvious decrease in cell viability was also observed (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS The extracts from disposable chopsticks, toothpicks, and paper cups can affect the growth and proliferation of L-929 cells and are potentially toxic to humans.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D009336	Necrosis	The death of cells in an organ or tissue due to disease, injury or failure of the blood supply.
D010209	Paper	Thin sheets made from wood pulp and other fibrous substances, used for writing, drawing, printing, image duplication or wrapping.	Papers
D010936	Plant Extracts	Concentrated pharmaceutical preparations of plants obtained by removing active constituents with a suitable solvent, which is evaporated away, and adjusting the residue to a prescribed standard.	Herbal Medicines,Plant Extract,Extract, Plant,Extracts, Plant,Medicines, Herbal
D002448	Cell Adhesion	Adherence of cells to surfaces or to other cells.	Adhesion, Cell,Adhesions, Cell,Cell Adhesions
D002460	Cell Line	Established cell cultures that have the potential to propagate indefinitely.	Cell Lines,Line, Cell,Lines, Cell
D002470	Cell Survival	The span of viability of a cell characterized by the capacity to perform certain functions such as metabolism, growth, reproduction, some form of responsiveness, and adaptability.	Cell Viability,Cell Viabilities,Survival, Cell,Viabilities, Cell,Viability, Cell
D002681	China	A country spanning from central Asia to the Pacific Ocean.	Inner Mongolia,Manchuria,People's Republic of China,Sinkiang,Mainland China
D002999	Clone Cells	A group of genetically identical cells all descended from a single common ancestral cell by mitosis in eukaryotes or by binary fission in prokaryotes. Clone cells also include populations of recombinant DNA molecules all carrying the same inserted sequence. (From King & Stansfield, Dictionary of Genetics, 4th ed)	Clones,Cell, Clone,Cells, Clone,Clone,Clone Cell
D003257	Consumer Product Safety	The sum total of measures taken and regulatory policies enacted to ensure the safe use of consumer products.	Safety, Consumer Product,Product Approval,Product Approvals,Product Safety, Consumer
D003297	Cooking and Eating Utensils	Tools used in COOKING or EATING such as cutlery, pots, pans, and dishes.	Eating Utensils,Cooking Utensils,Cooking Utensil,Eating Utensil,Utensil, Cooking,Utensil, Eating,Utensils, Cooking,Utensils, Eating