Researchers at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) have developed a new, high-throughout screening assay to identify nanomaterials that can cause oxidative damage to cells. The research allows large batches of metal-oxide nanomaterials to be assessed quickly, based on their ability to trigger certain biological responses in cells as a result of their semiconductor properties. The study, which is published in ACS Nano, was led by Andre Nel, chief of the division of nanomedicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine and California NanoSystems Institute at UCLA and director of the University of California Center for Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology.
The researchers found that semiconducting metal-oxide nanomaterials can have an electron-transfer effect when they come into contact with human cells that contain electronically active molecules. These reactions can create highly reactive oxygen molecules that can damage cells and trigger acute lung inflammation in humans and animals. They also determined that for this hazardous electron transfer to occur, the nanomaterials and cellular molecules must have similar electron energy levels. This characteristic was used to design the screening test that identified materials by electron energy level, and thus predicted which were likely to cause cell damage. These predictions were confirmed in animal studies.
This predictive screening technique could be used to assess large number of new nanomaterials in advance of their commercialisation and use in consumer products and manufacturing.
Fonte: Chemical Watch
