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Inhaling nanoparticles may injure lungs Futurity: Research News The current study used mice to examine the health effects of inhaling two types of nanomaterials, those made from titanium dioxide and those made from multi-walled carbon nanotubes, a...
"Pure gold nanoparticles found in everyday items such as personal care products can inhibit fat storage, slow wound healing, and accelerate wrinkling. ... The most disturbing finding was that the particles interfered with genetic regulation, RNA expression and inhibited the ability to differentiate into mature adipocytes or fat cells."
"Currently, little is known about the health effects of human exposure to these materials.
Objectives: As part of its role in supporting the National Nanotechnology Initiative, the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) has developed an integrated, strategic research program—“ONE Nano”—to increase our fundamental understanding of how ENMs interact with living systems, develop predictive models for quantifying ENM exposure and assessing ENM health impacts, and guide the design of second-generation ENMs to minimize adverse health effects."
Europe is failing to control a burgeoning industry in microscopic materials, prompting claims that it has failed to heed the lessons from millions of asbestos deaths, according to a hard-hitting new report... A major study published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) last week says European governments – including the UK's – are "paralysed by analysis" and failing to act: "Twenty years have elapsed since first indications of nanomaterial harm were published", it said, "and in the intervening time an increasing body of literature has been developed on how nanomaterials interact with cells, mammals and aquatic organisms. Yet many governments still call for more information as a substitute for action."
"Currently, USDA organic certified products are the last refuge for consumers wanting to [avoid] nanomaterials... Overall, little is being done to review, regulate, or safety test nanotechnology that is currently being used in agriculture and food processing, ingredients and packaging."
"Studies show that nanoparticles can easily penetrate DNA and the cells of the lungs, skin and digestive system, thereby causing harm to living organisms (2)... Nanoparticles are also now being engineered to be more resilient, thereby increasing the risk of causing irreversible damage to living organisms. We simply do not have sufficient data or risk assessment laws in place to analyse whether nanoparticles are safe for consumption."
"The information in the database is intended to form the basis of an evaluation of whether the content of nanomaterials in products on the Danish market poses a risk for consumers and the environment. The Ministry plans for the first reports to be due in early 2014."
"Nanoparticles like titanium oxide, iron oxide, zinc oxide, and silicon dioxide - which are commonly used in processed food, dietary supplements, cosmetics and personal care products may actually damage cells and DNA potentially leading to serious health conditions."
"Improved sunscreens are just one of the many innovative uses of nanotechnology, which involves drastically shrinking and fundamentally changing the structure of chemical compounds. But products made with nanomaterials also raise largely unanswered safety questions — such as whether the particles that make them effective can be absorbed into the bloodstream and are toxic to living cells."
"Titanium dioxide (TiO2) nanoparticles, found in everything from cosmetics to sunscreen to paint to vitamins, caused systemic genetic damage in mice, according to a comprehensive study conducted by researchers at UCLA’s Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center."
New groundbreaking research has found that exposure to nanoparticles can have a serious impact on health, linking it to rheumatoid arthritis and the development of other serious autoimmune diseases.
"People involved in making a material used to enhance computer and phone touch screens could be at risk of lung damage, according to new research."
Billions of engineered nanoparticles in foods and pharmaceuticals are ingested by humans daily, and new study warns they may be more harmful to health than previously thought.
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"These results indicate that MWCNT can increase the risk of cancer in mice exposed to a known carcinogen. The study did not indicate that MWCNTs alone cause cancer in mice. This research is an important step in our understanding of the hazards associated with MWCNT, but before we can determine whether MWCNT pose an occupational cancer risk, we need more information about workplace exposures, the types and nature of MWCNT being used in the workplace, and how that compares to the material used in this study. Research is underway at NIOSH to learn more about worker exposures and the potential occupational health risks associated with exposure to MWCNT and other types of CNTs and CNFs. As results from ongoing research become available, NIOSH will reassess its recommendations for CNT and CNF and make appropriate revisions as needed. NIOSH urges employers to share this information with workers and customers. NIOSH also requests that professional and trade associations and labor organizations inform their members about the potential hazards of CNT and CNF."
A concerning new study found that the aerosol from electronic cigarettes contains higher levels of measurable nanoparticle heavy metals than conventional tobacco smoke.
"Their small size allows nanoparticles to go places in the body where larger particles cannot and enter cells. They have been found in the blood stream after ingestion and inhalation, and while research on their health effects is limited, studies have shown them to have deleterious effects on mice and cells."
"However, as the potential uses of SiNPs have increased, research looking into the biological effects and toxicity has not kept up to speed. Studies have shown that inhalation of microcrystalline silica may be linked with the pulmonary disease silicosis in humans. Chronic inhalation studies in rats have been associated with pulmonary fibrosis and cancer, and exposure to microscale amporphous silica has been linked to inflammation, granuloma formation and emphysema. A complete understanding of the size, shape, and composition-dependent interactions of SiNPs with biological systems is lacking, largely due to suitable analytical methods. The Livermore PK analysis showed that SiNPs were rapidly cleared from the circulatory system (the "central compartment" in PK models) and were distributed to various body tissues, where they persisted over the eight-week time course of the study, raising questions about the potential for bioaccumulation and associated long-term effects."
The toxicity of ENMs can be significantly different from that of conventional materials, even when the two materials have the same chemical composition.
New research shows that the protective coating on titanium dioxide nanoparticles, a common component of sunscreen lotions, degrades in swimming pool water and forms dangerous reactive oxygen species.
Breathing in incredibly small fibres developed by the nanotechnology industry has the potential to be as damaging as asbestos, say researchers.
"Researchers have settled a long-standing controversy over the mechanism by which silver nanoparticles, the most widely used nanomaterial in the world, kill bacteria. Their work comes with a Nietzsche-esque warning: Use enough. If you don't kill them, you make them stronger."
Further research is needed into long-term exposure to nanomaterials released from metallic hip implants, according to a report from the European Commission’s Joint Research Centre (JRC). Every year about one million patients worldwide undergo...
Nanotechnology - Resources on nanotechnology, the environment, and human health. Includes links to regulations.
"Silver nanoparticles (Ag-NPs) have increasingly been used for coatings on various textiles and certain implants, for the treatment of wounds and burns, as a water disinfectant, and in air-freshener sprays. The wide use of Ag-NPs may have potential human health impacts... These results suggest that 5 nm Ag-NPs are mutagenic in mouse lymphoma cells due to induction of oxidative stress by the Ag-NPs."
Researchers in Texas are reporting that quantum dots (QDs) -- a product of the revolution in nanotechnology increasingly used in electronics, solar cells, and medical imaging devices -- may be toxic to cells under acidic or alkaline conditions.
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