Nanoparticles: Is Toxicity a Concern?
Nanotechnology involving manipulation of atoms and molecules at the nanoscale is one of the frontier areas of research in modern science. During the last few years, nanotechnology has witnessed breakthroughs in the fields of medicine, environment, therapeutics, drug development and biotechnology. This is due to the unique properties of nanomaterials (e.g. chemical, mechanical, optical, magnetic, and biological) which make them desirable for commercial and medical applications. Considering the theory and practice of using nanoparticles, nanotechnology has a great potential in improving treatment of various disorders and in vitro diagnostics. However, there is not much information available on the toxicity of nanoparticles in relation to human health. Toxic effect of nanomaterials on humans is the primary concern of the health industry. Nanomaterials are able to cross biological membranes and access cells, tissues and organs that larger-sized particles normally cannot. Nanomaterials can gain access to the blood stream via inhalation or ingestion. This may lead to both genotoxicity and biochemical toxicity. In this review we try to show which types, sizes and concentrations of nanoparticles are safe for human use and this will help in developing diagnostic, prognostic and therapeutic models using nanoparticles.
Department of Biochemistry, Kamineni Institute of Medical Sciences , Sreepuram, Narketpally, Nalgonda-508 254.
Ramakrishna
R
D
Department of Biochemistry, Kasturba Medical College , Manipal, Karnataka.
Pragna
P
Rao
Nanomedicine (Lond). 2007 Feb;2(1):113-23
17716197
Toxicology. 2005 Sep 15;213(1-2):66-73
15970370
J Control Release. 2004 Nov 5;100(1):5-28
15491807
J Nanosci Nanotechnol. 2009 Aug;9(8):4996-5007
19928180
Curr Med Chem. 2006;13(8):897-909
16611074
Ann Biomed Eng. 2006 Jan;34(1):75-88
16541328
Adv Exp Med Biol. 2007;620:48-56
18217334
Toxicol Sci. 2004 Jan;77(1):3-5
14756123
Nano Lett. 2006 Apr;6(4):662-8
16608261
Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet. 2006 Dec 5;141B(8):868-73
16941653
Methods Mol Biol. 2005;303:85-99
15923677
Environ Health Perspect. 2004 Sep;112(13):A740-9
15345364
Environ Health Perspect. 2005 Nov;113(11):1555-60
16263511
Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2010 May 28;396(2):578-83
20447378
Bioconjug Chem. 2004 Jul-Aug;15(4):710-7
15264857
Lancet. 2005 Mar 12-18;365(9463):923-4
15766981
Science. 2006 Feb 3;311(5761):622-7
16456071
Toxicol Sci. 2006 May;91(1):14-9
16476686
Langmuir. 2008 Jan 15;24(2):568-74
18052300
Chem Asian J. 2011 Feb 1;6(2):340-8
20725923
Nature. 2003 Dec 18;426(6968):750
14685189
Anticancer Drugs. 2005 Aug;16(7):691-707
16027517
Biocontrol Sci. 2006 Mar;11(1):17-26
16637435
Part Fibre Toxicol. 2005 Oct 06;2:8
16209704
J Nanobiotechnology. 2004 Dec 08;2(1):12
15588280
Part Fibre Toxicol. 2009 Sep 03;6:23
19725983
Small. 2005 Mar;1(3):325-7
17193451
Acta Biomater. 2006 Jul;2(4):409-19
16765881
Chem Rev. 2004 Jan;104(1):293-346
14719978
Part Fibre Toxicol. 2005 Oct 21;2:10
16242040
Part Fibre Toxicol. 2009 Jun 22;6:18
19545423
Fertil Steril. 2010 Jul;94(2):453-6
19394608
Nano Lett. 2007 Jun;7(6):1542-50
17465586
J Toxicol Environ Health A. 2002 Oct 25;65(20):1531-43
12396867
Curr Drug Discov Technol. 2011 Sep;8(3):207-27
21291409
Science. 2006 May 19;312(5776):1027-30
16709779
Toxicol Sci. 2006 Apr;90(2):296-303
16407094
J Toxicol Clin Toxicol. 1996;34(1):119-26
8632503
Toxicol Lett. 2010 Jun 2;195(2-3):161-8
20381595
J Am Chem Soc. 2006 Feb 15;128(6):2115-20
16464114
J Biol Chem. 2003 Jul 11;278(28):25348-56
12732646
Clin Chem. 1997 Jul;43(7):1248
9216470
Occup Environ Med. 2004 Sep;61(9):727-8
15317911
Toxicol Lett. 2004 Apr 1;149(1-3):235-42
15093269
Toxicology. 2007 Jan 25;230(1):90-104
17196727
Histochemistry. 1981;71(2):177-86
7239944
J Immunol. 2011 May 15;186(10):5543-7
21460209
Toxicol Sci. 2006 May;91(1):227-36
16495353
Prog Lipid Res. 2003 Nov;42(6):463-78
14559067
Int J Pharm. 2005 Jul 25;298(2):310-4
15923094
Toxicol Sci. 2006 Jul;92(1):174-85
16613837
Part Fibre Toxicol. 2010 Apr 16;7:10
20398356
Nature. 2003 Jul 17;424(6946):246-8
12867950
Small. 2008 Jan;4(1):153-9
18081130
ACS Nano. 2011 May 24;5(5):3766-78
21446668
Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2003 Jan 15;167(2):158-63
12411282
Drug Deliv. 2004 May-Jun;11(3):169-83
15204636
FASEB J. 2005 Mar;19(3):311-30
15746175
Nano Lett. 2007 Jul;7(7):1929-34
17550297