Fig. 2: PE N/MPs and PE QDs/NPs perinuclearly accumulate in VK2 E6/E7 cells after acute exposure. | Cell Death Discovery

Fig. 2: PE N/MPs and PE QDs/NPs perinuclearly accumulate in VK2 E6/E7 cells after acute exposure.

From: Polyethylene nano- and microplastics trigger metabolic stress responses in human vaginal epithelial cells

Fig. 2: PE N/MPs and PE QDs/NPs perinuclearly accumulate in VK2 E6/E7 cells after acute exposure.

A VK2 E6/E7 cells exposed to unlabeled PE N/MPs (25–250 μg/mL; 200 nm–9 μm) for 48 h showed dose-dependent vesicle formation. Vesicles were sparse and diffuse at 25 and 50 μg/mL (PE 25, PE 50), while 250 μg/mL (PE 250) induced marked perinuclear accumulation. Exposure to labeled PE QDs/NPs (25–50 μg/mL; 200–300 nm) led to prominent perinuclear vesicles even at 25 μg/mL (PE QDs 25). Veh: cells exposed to Tween20 0.0025% solution. CTRL: unexposed cells. 40x magnification, scale bar = 50 μm. B Confocal microscopy confirmed QD fluorescence within vesicles, indicating PE NP internalization (red dots). Green cell autofluorescence aided cell morphology visualization. Yellow-boxed cells indicate those selected for synchrotron-based imaging (shown in Fig. 3B, C). 60x magnification, scale bar = 50 μm.

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