The OECD expert meeting on ecotoxicology and environmental fate--towards the development of improved OECD guidelines for the testing of nanomaterials.
On behalf of the OECD Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials (WPMN) an expert meeting on ecotoxicology and environmental fate of nanomaterials (NMs) took place in January 2013 in Berlin. At this meeting experts from science, industry and regulatory bodies discussed the applicability of OECD test guidelines (TGs) for chemicals to nanomaterials. The objective was to discuss the current state of the relevant science and provide recommendations to the OECD WPMN on (1) the need for updating current OECD TGs and the need for developing new ones specific to nanomaterials; and (2) guidance needed for the appropriate and valid testing of environmental fate and ecotoxicity endpoints for NMs. Experts at the workshop agreed that the majority of the OECD TG for chemicals were generally applicable for the testing of NM, with the exception of TG 105 (water solubility) and 106 (adsorption-desorption). Additionally, the workshop also highlighted considerations when conducting OECD chemical TG on nanomaterials (e.g., sample preparation, dispersion, analysis, dosimetry and characterisation). These considerations will lead to the future development of proposals for new TG and guidance documents (GDs) to ensure that OECD TG give meaningful, repeatable, and accurate results when used for nanomaterials. This report provides a short overview of topics discussed during the meeting and the main outcomes. A more detailed report of the workshop will become available through the OECD, however, due to the urgency of having OECD TG relevant for nanomaterials, this brief report is being shared with the scientific community through this communication.
Helmholtz-Centre for Environmental Research - UFZ, Permoser Str. 15, 04318 Leipzig, Germany. Electronic address: dana.kuehnel@ufz.de.
Dana
D
Kühnel
IUTA e.V., Air Quality & Sustainable Nanotechnology, Bliersheimer Str. 60, 47229 Duisburg, Germany. Electronic address: nickel@iuta.de.
Carmen
C
Nickel
D003245:Consensus Statements as Topic; D054750:Ecotoxicology; D058735:Environmental Policy; D004785:Environmental Pollutants / Q000633:toxicity*; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D049329:Nanostructures / Q000633:toxicity*; D018675:Toxicity Tests / Q000379:methods / Q000592:standards*
D004785:Environmental Pollutants
BAF; BCF; EDX; Engineered nanomaterial; FFF; GD; GSPD; Guidance document; Guidance on Sample Preparation and Dosimetry, NM, nanomaterial; OECD; OECD Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials (WPMN); OECD test guideline; Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development; Risk assessment; TG; WNT; WPMN; Working Group of the National Coordinators of the Test Guidelines Programme; Working Party on Manufactured Nanomaterials; bioaccumulation factor; bioconcentration factor; energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy; field-flow fractionation; guidance document; single particle inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry; sp-ICP-MS; test guideline