Abstract
ZnO-based nanomaterials are a subject of increasing interest within current research, because of their multifunctional properties, such as piezoelectricity, semi-conductivity, ultraviolet absorption, optical transparency, and photoluminescence, as well as their low toxicity, biodegradability, low cost, and versatility in achieving diverse shapes. Among the numerous fields of application, the use of nanostructured ZnO is increasingly widespread also in the biomedical and healthcare sectors, thanks to its antiseptic and antibacterial properties, role as a promoter in tissue regeneration, selectivity for specific cell lines, and drug delivery function, as well as its electrochemical and optical properties, which make it a good candidate for biomedical applications. Because of its growing use, understanding the toxicity of ZnO nanomaterials and their interaction with biological systems is crucial for manufacturing relevant engineering materials. In the last few years, ZnO nanostructures were also used to functionalize polymer matrices to produce hybrid composite materials with new properties. Among the numerous manufacturing methods, electrospinning is becoming a mainstream technique for the production of scaffolds and mats made of polymeric and metal-oxide nanofibers. In this review, we focus on toxicological aspects and recent developments in the use of ZnO-based nanomaterials for biomedical, healthcare, and sustainability applications, either alone or loaded inside polymeric matrices to make electrospun composite nanomaterials. Bibliographic data were compared and analyzed with the aim of giving homogeneity to the results and highlighting reference trends useful for obtaining a fresh perspective about the toxicity of ZnO nanostructures and their underlying mechanisms for the materials and engineering community.
Highlights
In recent decades, zinc oxide (ZnO) became an extremely popular in material science because of its multifunctional properties, low cost, and great versatility of use in various research areas and applications
The penetration of the NWs into the membrane would be strongly influenced by their diameter; instead, in the second case, the engraftment failure could be due to the topography of the array, in particular the density and spacing of NWs, which can lead to an insufficiency in flatness of the surface required for cell adhesion
The results showed toxicity following the internalization of cell lines with ZnO NPs, manifested with apoptotic phenomena related to DNA damage and loss of mitochondrial membrane potential induced by ROS increase
Summary
Zinc oxide (ZnO) became an extremely popular in material science because of its multifunctional properties, low cost, and great versatility of use in various research areas and applications. The scientific interest was accompanied by a considerable growth of the ZnO market in industry, in sectors such as rubber, ceramic materials [1,2], paints [3,4], food packaging [5], cosmetics, and pharmaceutical products [6,7], as well as being highly used for electronic devices [8]. ZnO is recognized as a bio-safe material, and its use in cosmetic products is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which is certainly a driving force in ZnO market growth. ZNnaOnomisaterreiaclos g20n1i9z, e9,d14a4s9 a bio-safe material, and its use in cosmetic products is approved by the F2ooof d33 and Drug Administration (FDA), which is certainly a driving force in ZnO market growth. The effects of process parameters in electrospinning, such as different solvents, flow rates, needle-collector distance, etc., on fiber morphology and, to a certain extent, on biological performance are not in the scope of this review
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