This book offers a comprehensive overview of recent studies conducted on the biological effects of metal nanoparticles. It also provides a solid theoretical foundation and various metal nanoparticle synthesis methods. Part I reviews the main chemical methods used for synthesizing metal nanoparticles in a solution and describes original method of biochemical synthesis, as well as some special procedures developed specifically for studying the biological activity of nanoparticles. Part II analyzes current literature on the effects of metal nanoparticles observed in microorganisms and addresses the influence of silver nanoparticles obtained by biochemical synthesis on biological objects on various organization levels, namely on microorganisms, acellular slim mold, unicellular alga, plant seeds and mammalian cells. The last section explains the central problems common in studies on the biological effects of metal nanoparticles and outlines potential uses of this trend in bio-nanotechnologies. This book is aimed at specialists, professors and students aspiring to expand their knowledge about the biological activities of metal nanoparticles and nanoparticle-containing materials.

Addresses health and safety issues associated with workplace Nanoparticle exposures • Describes methods to evaluate and control worker exposures to engineered nanoparticles • Provides guidance for concerned EHS professionals on acceptable levels of exposure to nanoparticles • Includes documentation on best practices to be followed by all researchers when working with engineered nanoparticles • Describes current knowledge on toxicity of nanoparticles • Includes coverage on Routes of Exposure for Engineered Nanoparticles

Assessing Nanoparticle Risks to Human Health provides a systematic overview of nanoparticle risks and considers the limitations of this paradigm in a context where extreme uncertainties prevail. As well as exploring conventional risk assessment methodology, the contributing authors investigate several alternate approaches. The adequacy of current frameworks for risk management and regulatory oversights, including corporate approaches in the US and EU, are explored, and suggestions are made as to how these frameworks can be modified to make them more efficient and effective.Presenting a coherent framework for analysis of the available information, this book presents the latest scientific understanding of the toxicity and health effects of nanoparticles, the technical issues relating to exposure assessment and management, and the ways in which the current risk paradigm can be used/modified to deal with the challenges of nanoparticle risks.All chapters of this new edition have been thoroughly updated to reflect the many changes in the field since the first edition. Additions and updates in the second edition of the book include: - New exposure assessment strategies for nanomaterials including life cycle exposure assessment approaches and detailed information on nanoparticle exposure control and protection in the workplace. - A state-of-the-art scientific update on the hazard and risk assessment of nanomaterials: discussion of key additional publications on the toxicology and biokinetics of nanomaterials; available data and methods to characterize the health hazard and risk of exposure to nanomaterials in the workplace; additional examples of the use of such data and methods to develop occupational safety and health guidance; and discussion of progress to date, ongoing efforts, and remaining challenges in nanomaterials hazard and risk characterization. - New studies on the use of expert judgment in nanotechnology. - Quantitative data from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory's 4-phase study. - A description and evaluation of new CB tools and new ISO technical specifications. - A comprehensive update of the legal frameworks in the US and the EU. With the second edition of Assessing Nanoparticle Risks to Human Health Prof. Ramachandran provides researchers and practitioners producing or using nanoparticles, or those involved in nanomaterials risk assessments, technology, health science, policy, safety, environment and regulatory aspects an invaluable reference to adopt the right technologies and strategies and to comply to legal frameworks and regulations. For policy makers and advisory firms it provides the knowledge needed to advise on compliance with or development of new regulations on nanomaterials. - Makes essential reading for risk assessment professionals, companies working with nanoparticles, nanotechnology research groups and regulators - Explores the use of risk assessment methodologies in an occupational health setting, and their limitations - Provides a framework for evidence-based decision making in a context with many uncertainties

The environment is prone to suffer pollution and toxic insult from generations of nanomaterials as well from accidental releases during production, transportation, and disposal operations. The NMs could interact with and cause adverse biological effects at cellular, subcellular, and molecular levels. Assessing potential environmental/ecological risks requires quality information on transport and fate of nanoparticles in the environment, exposures and vulnerabilities of organisms to the nanomaterials and standard methods for assessing toxicity for aquatic or terrestrial organisms and human health. The systematic risk characterization and evaluation of the safety of nanomaterials require a multidisciplinary approach and convergence of knowledge and efforts from researchers and experts from toxicology, biotechnology, materials science, chemistry, physics, engineering, and other branches of life sciences. Although studies are beginning to appear in the literature addressing the toxicity of various nanomaterials and their potential for exposure, at this stage definitive statements regarding the impacts of nanomaterials on human health and the environment remain sketchy requiring an increased level of precautions with regard to nanomaterials, as has happened with other emerging contaminants and technologies (e.g., biotechnology). The need for an increased level of understanding the perception of risk and of benefits will vary and is likely to influence public, regulatory, and non-governmental activities regarding risk and benefit evaluations. Systematic identification and assessment of the risks posed by any new technology are essential. A prudent, integrated, and holistic approach is required to develop best practices based on the scientific understanding about what we know and what we don’t know but need to know. Nanomaterials addresses key issues of ecotoxicological actions and effects of nanomaterials on life and environment, their threats, vulnerability, risks, and public perception. The readers learn to read bad news objectively and think about and search for ecological ‘green’ solutions to current environmental and ecological problems with blue, grey, brown, and red shades for building a sustainable ecosystem. It shows how this molecular terrain is a common ground for interdisciplinary research and education that will be an essential component of science, engineering and technology in the future. The book is divided into three sections. Section I includes general topics related to ecotoxicity of nanomaterials to microbes, plants, human and environment. Section 2 incorporates risks generated by the use of nanomaterials. Section 3 discusss safety issues and the public.

This book offers an unparalleled source of information on in vivo assessment of nanoparticle toxicity by using Drosophila as a model organism. Nanoparticles have emerged as an useful tool for wide variety of biomedical, cosmetics, and industrial applications. However, our understanding of nanomaterial-mediated toxicity under in vivo condition remains limited. The book begins with a chapter on synthesis and characterization of nanoparticles used for various biological, medical and commercial purposes. The rest of the chapters deal with the impact of nanoparticles on different biological aspects like behavior, physiology and metabolic homoeostasis using Drosophila as a model organism. Lastly, the book summarizes how proper characterization and evaluation of safe dosage of nanoparticles can be a boon if incorporated in consumer goods and for biomedical applications. Overall, the book pursues an interdisciplinary approach by connecting nanotechnology and biology from various angles using Drosophila as a model system, so as to develop more efficient, safe and effective use of nanoparticles for human beings.

Highlighted in this compilation of papers is the role and importance of heavy metals in the environment. It provides up-to-date information in a field of active research and progress, where the focus is on effects and interactions between the environment and organisms, as well as contaminant dynamics. Several papers address the impact of heavy metals on our health. The influence of metals on plants is described in an exhaustive study on lichens, which have been widely used as biomonitors for environmental contamination by heavy metals. Metals are also accumulated by animals, as seen in a chapter which focusses on sediment/benthic organism interactions and biomonitoring in fish. Soil interactions are discussed, as well as regional studies of freshwater sediments and the marine environment. The final part of the book addresses a crucial problem: the management of stabilized municipal waste sludges. As a result, the most important and significant recent trends are included, emphasizing interactions with and impacts of heavy metals on humans, animals, plants and soils.

Increasing applications of metal-containing nanoparticles (NPs), the largest class of consumer nanomaterials, has heightened the need evaluate their potential environmental ramifications. Of these, copper- and zinc-containing nanoparticles (Cu-NP and Zn-NP) are important due to their widespread use, low cost, and biological relevance of their respective metals. As microorganisms are at the foundation of all food webs and define available nutrients for ecological niches, understanding their interactions with metal-containing NPs is essential for addressing their inevitable release into the environment. Few studies, however, examine the impact of biological variables on the microbial response to metal-containing NPs. To address these gaps, high-throughput screening methods, which examine multiple conditions simultaneously, were combined with traditional toxicity diagnostics, which examine specific parameters in depth, to effectively explore NP-microbe interactions. Previous studies have also neglected to examine how NP sensitivity changes with exposure time. To this end, Zn-NP toxicity was assessed using a time-resolved high-throughput screening methodology in an arrayed Escherichia coli genome-wide knockout (KO) library to determine changes in sensitivity with time. Through sequential screening, this method identified sensitive clones from diverse biological pathways, which fell into two general groups: early and late responders. These results suggested bacterial toxicity mechanisms changed from pathways related to general metabolic function, transport, signaling, and metal ion homeostasis to membrane synthesis pathways and reflected different growth stages in E. coli. To ensure that the responses to NP exposures observed for the model laboratory strain, E. coli, translated to environmentally relevant microbes, nitrogen cycling microorganisms were studied further because of their role as primary drivers of biogeochemical nitrogen transformations. Previous assessments of NP interactions have ignored biofilms, the primary mode of growth for environmental microorganisms. Impacts of Cu-NP exposure to biofilms were compared to respective planktonic cultures of the ammonium oxidizing Nitrosomonas europaea, nitrogen-fixing Azotobacter vinelandii, and denitrifying Paracoccus denitrificans using a suite of independent toxicity diagnostics. When compared to unexposed controls, growth parameters in N. europaea and P. denitrificans biofilms were more resilient to inhibition than planktonic cultures. Likewise, physiological evaluation of ammonium oxidation and nitrate reduction and respective functional gene expression showed that biofilms were also less impacted by Cu-NPs than their respective planktonic cells. These results suggest biofilms reduced NP inhibition, and that nitrogen cycling bacteria in wastewater, wetlands, and soils are more resilient to NPs than planktonic-based assessments might suggest. To build upon trends observed for pure cultures, changes in nitrogen cycling microorganisms in wetland-derived microcosms following acute and chronic Cu-NP exposure were characterized using the functional microarray Geochip platform. Although shifts to nitrogen transformation activity occurred after acute exposure, significant changes to microbial ecology only occurred after long-term exposure. Among genes coding for various nitrogen cycling enzymes, anammox and nitrogen fixation genes decreased to the largest extent, while those for denitrification were least sensitive to changes. This study implies that sudden NP influxes into wetlands may impair nitrogen cycling initially, but chronic exposure may result in microbial changes, which promote net nitrogen fluxes out of the system. Taken together, these results highlight a methodological framework for using high-throughput and traditional assays in tandem to explore biological factors in NP-microbial assessments. Furthermore, the data suggest that biological factors significantly shape microbial sensitivity to NPs and must be considered while assessing environmental impacts of NP releases as a result of manufacturing, use, and disposal of nano-enabled products and applications.

This book is divided into four main sections thoroughly analyzing the use of nanomaterials for water, air and soil solutions, and emphasizing environmental risks. Providing background on nanomaterials' two-decade study, it discusses the characterization and application of unconventional disinfectants, called antimicrobial nanomaterials, which fall into three categories and, while seemingly harmless, have potential hazards if applied improperly. Special attention is given to the process of remediation, synthetics techniques, and properties of nanomaterials, with examples to which new and trained readers in the field can relate and understand. an interdisciplinary approach, aimed at scientists in physical chemistry, nanotechnology, and environmental sciences includes applications of non-conventional techniques in environmental protection furthers the development of applied nanoscience and nanotechnology suggests new industrial projects and university courses addressing nanotechnology in and for the environment includes applications for water, air and soil protection

Metal Oxide Nanoparticles A complete nanoparticle resource for chemists and industry professionals Metal oxide nanoparticles are integral to a wide range of natural and technological processes—from mineral transformation to electronics. Additionally, the fields of engineering, electronics, energy technology, and electronics all utilize metal oxide nanoparticle powders. Metal Oxide Nanoparticles: Formation, Functional Properties, and Interfaces presents readers with the most relevant synthesis and formulation approaches for using metal oxide nanoparticles as functional materials. It covers common processing routes and the assessment of physical and chemical particle properties through comprehensive and complementary characterization methods. This book will serve as an introduction to nanoparticle formulation, their interface chemistry and functional properties at the nanoscale. It will also act as an in-depth resource, sharing detailed information on advanced approaches to the physical, chemical, surface, and interface characterization of metal oxide nanoparticle powders and dispersions. Addresses the application of metal oxide nanoparticles and its economic impact Examines particle synthesis, including the principles of selected bottom-up strategies Explores nanoparticle formulation—a selection of processing and application routes Discusses the significance of particle surfaces and interfaces on structure formation, stability and functional materials properties Covers metal oxide nanoparticle characterization at different length scales With this valuable resource, academic researchers, industrial chemists, and PhD students can all gain insight into the synthesis, properties, and applications of metal oxide nanoparticles.