Preparation, characterization, and stability of selenium nanoparticles decorated with Mori Fructus polysaccharide and its protective effects in bisphenol A-induced Sertoli cells

Bisphenol A (BPA) is an endocrine disruptor universally present in food packaging, which may cause oxidative stress and reproductive toxicity through migration to food and ingestion then. Both Mori Fructus and selenium have excellent antioxidant ability and good therapeutic effects on reproductive improvement. Hence, in this work, Mori Fructus polysaccharide (MFP) was selected as a stabilizer to synthesize MFP‑selenium nanoparticles (MFP-SeNPs) by chemical reduction method. The structural properties, stability and antioxidant activity of MFP-SeNPs were subsequently characterized and studied. The results suggested that spherical MFP-SeNPs (average size 80.73 nm, zeta potential -31.8 mV) with zero-valent and well dispersion was successfully synthesized with 1 mg/mL MFP as a stabilizer, which could be stabilized at 4 °C for 35 d. Compared with MFP and SeNPs, MFP-SeNPs had stronger radical scavenging ability, it could also decrease the levels of MDA and ROS and enhance the GSH-px and SOD activity through PI3K/Akt pathways in BPA-induced TM4 cells. Taken together, MFP-SeNPs could become a potential antioxidant to improve male reproductive functions in the future food field.