Route of administration induced in vivo effects and toxicity responses of Zinc Oxide nanorods at molecular and genetic levels

Zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoparticles have received growing attention for several biomedical applications. Nanoparticles proposed for these applications possess the potential to interact with biological components such as the blood, cells/ tissues following their administration into the body. Hence we carried out in vivo investigations in Swiss Albino Mice to understand the interaction of ZnO nanorods with the biological components following intravenous and oral routes of administration to assess nanoparticles safety. Intravenously injected ZnO nanorods were found to induce the significant reduction in the red blood cells and platelet counts. Elevated levels of serum enzymes such as serum glutamate oxaloacetate transaminase, serum glutamate pyruvate transaminase were observed following intravenous and oral administration. Also, increased levels (p