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New newsletter available on engineered nanoparticle risk assessment

The first newsletter from the European FP7 ENPRA project is now available to download.  Launched in May 2009, ENPRA (Engineered NanoParticle Risk Assessment) is a major new European FP7 project to develop and implement a novel integrated approach for engineered nanoparticle risk assessment.

This first informative newsletter provides an overview of the aims and objectives of ENPRA, as well as summarising research progress and developments from the first 6 months of the project.  This includes discussion of work towards a coordinated plan for in vivo validation tests and an overview of the first ENPRA Expert Panel Meeting held in Paris during November, which aimed to harness collective expertise to highlight key progress in nano safety.

The newsletter also provides a summary of up-coming events in the ENPRA calendar, including the first ENPRA Stakeholders' Information Workshop and the first annual ENPRA Project Meeting, the latter of which has been organised to fall in conjunction with the Nanotoxicology 2010 conference in Edinburgh.

Download the newsletter: http://www.enpra.eu/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=x1ipU9U4IPI%3d&tabid=58

New study reveals nanosilver toxicity in fish

Nanosilver is is being increasingly and widely used as a component of many products, e.g. as an antibacterial in consumer goods such as socks and other clothing, work surfaces, cutting boards, keyboards and detergents. Currently, few regulations exist for the application of nanosilver in many of these products.  

A new study by researchers at Purdue University found that nanosilver suspended in solution proved toxic and even lethal to fathead minnows, often used to test aquatic toxicity. When the nanosilver was allowed to settle, the solution became several times less toxic but still caused malformations in the minnows.

The researchers pointed out that the use of nanosilver can provide a number of sanitary benefits if used properly but added that "…the indiscriminate inclusion of nanosilver into products to simply allow them to say they are antimicrobial is creating a cautionary issue." The team plans to develop tests to understand the effect different nanoparticles have on fish and other organisms and plan to develop testing to determine nanosilver concentrations in the environment. 

Source: Purdue University
http://www.purdue.edu/newsroom/research/2010/...

Abstract: http://www.springerlink.com/content/n64u7507871r1822/

New study on nanoparticles in seawater

In a new laboratory study, researchers from the University of Connecticut (UConn) have found that saltwater oysters and mussels can take up and retain significant amounts of manufactured nanoparticles from seawater in clumps of so-called "marine snow".

Manufactured nanomaterials can be found in such diverse applications as electronics, cosmetics, paints, and medicines, but their effects on the environment remain largely unknown. As the application of nanomaterials in products grows, the need to understand any ecotoxicological effects becomes increasingly important.

According to the team, materials rarely exist as individual particles in the ocean.  Instead, ocean currents bind up particles and sticky organic matter into aggregates referred to as "marine snow." These aggregates then sink to the bottom, where filter feeders like bivalves ingest them. They sees their work as a first step in understanding the potential issues associated with manufactured nanoparticles, but emphasises that further work is needed to determine the amounts of manufactured nanoparticles in seawater and their levels of toxicity to living things.

Source: University of Connecticut http://today.uconn.edu/?p=10249

Abstract:
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?...