Irreversible immune dysfunction in earthworms from MoS 2 nanosheet exposure: implications for nanoenabled agricultural sustainability

Sun, K.; White, J.C.; Lynch, I.; Zhang, P.; He, E.; Peijnenburg, W.J.G.M.; Qiu, H. (2026)

Article / Letter to editor

Nano-MoS2 is emerging as a promising agricultural nanomaterial. However, nanoenabled agriculture must balance the proposed benefits with potential risks associated with material incorporation into soil matrices. This work establishes a full-process risk assessment profile for MoS2 encompassing precursor particles, exfoliated nanosheets, and dissolved ionic species using the soil invertebrate Eisenia fetida under exposure-recovery cycles. The results showed that although precursor MoS2 exposure at 5-50 mg Mo/kg for 7 days significantly activated (p < 0.001) earthworm lumbrokinase (9.4%), antimicrobial peptide (10.2-14.0%), and hemolysin (11.9%) levels compared to the control, the biota exhibited transient immune memory and persistence upon another 7 days of recovery. Once exfoliated to nanosheet form at a consistent 5-50 mg Mo/kg dose range, more pronounced ion release (3.8-6.4%) and prolonged in vivo accumulation (43.9-55.4% excluded) of MoS2 nanosheets mediated persistent immune-related gene initiation. Importantly, the filamentous extension of external DNA between immune cells and deterministic clustering of endosymbiotic microbial communities were shown to collaboratively establish the in vivo homeostasis after MoS2 nanosheet exposure. These findings mechanistically demonstrate the persistent stress on soil invertebrate immune systems under MoS2 nanosheet exposure and highlight the need to link nanoenabled agriculture to soil eco-sustainability.

• All authors: Sun, K.; White, J.C.; Lynch, I.; Zhang, P.; He, E.; Peijnenburg, W.J.G.M.; Qiu, H.
• Date: 2026-01-16
• Journal: Environmental Science and Technology
• Volume: 60
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 3093 - 3106
• DOI: doi:10.1021/acs.est.5c14710
• Link: https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/acs.est.5c14710