Abstract
The aim of this study is to identify current knowledge gaps in fate, exposure, and toxicity of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs), highlight research gaps, and suggest future research directions. Humans and other living organisms are exposed to ENMs during production or use of products containing them. To assess the hazards of ENMs, it is important to assess their physiochemical properties and try to relate them to any observed hazard. However, the full determination of these relationships is currently limited by the lack of empirical data. Moreover, most toxicity studies do not use realistic environmental exposure conditions for determining dose-response parameters, affecting the accurate estimation of health risks associated with the exposure to ENMs. Regulatory aspects of nanotechnology are still developing and are currently the subject of much debate. Synthesis of available studies suggests a number of open questions. These include (i) developing a combination of different analytical methods for determining ENM concentration, size, shape, surface properties, and morphology in different environmental media, (ii) conducting toxicity studies using environmentally relevant exposure conditions and obtaining data relevant to developing quantitative nanostructure-toxicity relationships (QNTR), and (iii) developing guidelines for regulating exposure of ENMs in the environment.
Highlights
Production and demand of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) embedded in consumer products are growing significantly in the current years [1, 2]
To estimate the environmental and human health risks associated with ENM exposure, information about their size, shape, and the dose-response relation is required [37, 44]
This review focuses on four important aspects of the intentionally produced group of ENMs
Summary
Production and demand of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) embedded in consumer products are growing significantly in the current years [1, 2]. TiO2 nanoparticles have been observed to induce DNA and chromosomal damage in the liver [13, 20] These effect-based studies indicate that ENMs exert different toxicities in a particular target organ depending on their properties. This highlights the need for further investigations related to the exposure of ENMs. To estimate the environmental and human health risks associated with ENM exposure, information about their size, shape, and the dose-response relation is required [37, 44]. The concluding section presents issues on different aspects and future research needs
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