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Analysis of institutional authors

Fuentes López, CristinaAuthorFuentes López, AnaAuthorBarat, JmAuthor

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October 30, 2024
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In vitro toxicological evaluation of mesoporous silica microparticles functionalised with carvacrol and thymol

Publicated to: FOOD AND CHEMICAL TOXICOLOGY. 160 1-13 - 2022-01-01 160(), DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2021.112778

Authors:

Fuentes López, Cristina; Fuentes López, Ana; Byrne, Hugh J.; Barat Baviera, José Manuel; Ruiz, María José
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Affiliations

Technol Univ Dublin, FOCAS Res Inst, City Campus - Author
Univ Politecn Valencia, Dept Food Technol, Camino Vera S-N - Author
Univ Valencia, Fac Pharm, Lab Toxicol, Av Vicent Andres Estelles S-N - Author
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Abstract

The cytotoxicity of carvacrol- and thymol-functionalised mesoporous silica microparticles (MCM-41) was assessed in the human hepatocarcinoma cell line (HepG2). Cell viability, lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) activity, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, mitochondrial membrane potential (Delta Psi m), lipid peroxidation (LPO) and apoptosis/necrosis analyses were used as endpoints. The results showed that both materials induced cytotoxicity in a time- and concentration-dependent manner, and were more cytotoxic than free essential oil components and bare MCM-41. This effect was caused by cell-particle interactions and not by degradation products released to the culture media, as demonstrated in the extract dilution assays. LDH release was a less sensitive endpoint than the MTT (thiazolyl blue tetrazolium bromide) assay, which suggests the impairment of the mitochondrial function as the primary cytotoxic mechanism. In vitro tests on specialised cell functions showed that exposure to sublethal concentrations of these materials did not induce ROS formation during 2 h of exposure, but produced LPO and Delta Psi m alterations in a concentration-dependent manner when cells were exposed for 24 h. The obtained results generally support the hypothesis that the carvacrol- and thymol-functionalised MCM-41 microparticles induced toxicity in HepG2 cells by an oxidative stress-related mechanism that resulted in apoptosis through the mitochondrial pathway.
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Keywords

ApoptosisArticleBiocompatibilityCarvacrolCell survivalCell viabilityCellular toxicityChemistryConcentration responseControlled studyCymenesCytotoxicityCytotoxicity assaysDeliveryDrug effectEssential oil componentsEssential oilsHep g2 cellsHep-g2 cell lineHepg2HumanHuman cellHumansIn vitro studyLactate dehydrogenaseLipid peroxidationMcm-41MechanismMembrane potential, mitochondrialMesoporous microparticlesMesoporous silica nanoparticleMetabolismMitochondriaMitochondrial membrane potentialMitochondrionMttNecrosisOxidative stressParticlesReactive oxygen metaboliteReactive oxygen speciesSilicaSilicon dioxideThymolToxicityToxicity testingToxicology

Quality index

Bibliometric impact. Analysis of the contribution and dissemination channel

The work has been published in the journal FOOD AND CHEMICAL TOXICOLOGY due to its progression and the good impact it has achieved in recent years, according to the agency WoS (JCR), it has become a reference in its field. In the year of publication of the work, 2022, it was in position 20/94, thus managing to position itself as a Q1 (Primer Cuartil), in the category Toxicology.

From a relative perspective, and based on the normalized impact indicator calculated from World Citations provided by WoS (ESI, Clarivate), it yields a value for the citation normalization relative to the expected citation rate of: 1.12. This indicates that, compared to works in the same discipline and in the same year of publication, it ranks as a work cited above average. (source consulted: ESI Nov 13, 2025)

Specifically, and according to different indexing agencies, this work has accumulated citations as of 2026-04-03, the following number of citations:

  • WoS: 10
  • Scopus: 10
  • Europe PMC: 4
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Impact and social visibility

From the perspective of influence or social adoption, and based on metrics associated with mentions and interactions provided by agencies specializing in calculating the so-called "Alternative or Social Metrics," we can highlight as of 2026-04-03:

  • The use of this contribution in bookmarks, code forks, additions to favorite lists for recurrent reading, as well as general views, indicates that someone is using the publication as a basis for their current work. This may be a notable indicator of future more formal and academic citations. This claim is supported by the result of the "Capture" indicator, which yields a total of: 23 (PlumX).

With a more dissemination-oriented intent and targeting more general audiences, we can observe other more global scores such as:

    It is essential to present evidence supporting full alignment with institutional principles and guidelines on Open Science and the Conservation and Dissemination of Intellectual Heritage. A clear example of this is:

    • The work has been submitted to a journal whose editorial policy allows open Open Access publication.
    • Assignment of a Handle/URN as an identifier within the deposit in the Institutional Repository: http://hdl.handle.net/10251/195284
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    Leadership analysis of institutional authors

    This work has been carried out with international collaboration, specifically with researchers from: United Kingdom.

    There is a significant leadership presence as some of the institution’s authors appear as the first or last signer, detailed as follows: First Author (Fuentes, C) .

    the author responsible for correspondence tasks has been Fuentes, C.

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    Awards linked to the item

    The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support from the Spanish government (Project RTI2018-101599-B-C21 (MCUI/AEI/FEDER, EU)).
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