Palmieri Valentina, De Maio Flavio, De Spirito Marco, Papi Massimiliano
Istituto dei Sistemi Complessi, CNR, Via dei Taurini 19, 00185 Rome, Italy.
Dipartimento di Neuroscienze, Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, Rome, Italy.
Nano Today. 2021 Apr;37:101077. doi: 10.1016/j.nantod.2021.101077. Epub 2021 Jan 13.
Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is one of the biggest challenges of the 21st century. While researchers are working on vaccine development and elucidating the mechanism of action and evolution of the harmful SARS-CoV-2, the current most important public health measure, second only to social distancing, is the obligatory wearing of facial protection. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended in April 2020 that the public wear face coverings in areas with high rates of transmission based on epidemiological evidence on the strong relationship between mask wearing and pandemic control. This protection against SARS-CoV-2 and other airborne pathogens, boost the design and production of innovative solutions by industry stakeholders. Nanoparticles, nanofibers, and other pioneering technologies based on nanomaterials have been introduced in mask production chains to improve performance and confer antiviral properties. During an emergency like COVID-19, these products directly available to the public should be carefully analyzed in terms of efficacy and possible long-term effects on the wearers' skin and lungs as well as on the environment. This opinion paper provides a wealth of information on the role of nanotechnologies in improving the performance of facial masks and on possible future consequences caused by a poorly regulated use of nanotechnology in textiles.
2019冠状病毒病（COVID-19）是21世纪最大的挑战之一。在研究人员致力于疫苗研发并阐明有害的严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）的作用机制和演变过程时，当前最重要的公共卫生措施（仅次于保持社交距离）是强制佩戴面部防护用品。美国疾病控制与预防中心于2020年4月建议，基于口罩佩戴与疫情控制之间紧密关系的流行病学证据，公众应在传播率高的地区佩戴面罩。这种针对SARS-CoV-2和其他空气传播病原体的防护措施，推动了行业利益相关者设计和生产创新解决方案。纳米颗粒、纳米纤维以及其他基于纳米材料的前沿技术已被引入口罩生产链，以提高性能并赋予抗病毒特性。在像COVID-19这样的紧急情况下，对于这些直接面向公众的产品，应从功效以及对佩戴者皮肤和肺部可能产生的长期影响，还有对环境的影响等方面进行仔细分析。这篇观点论文提供了大量有关纳米技术在提升口罩性能方面的作用，以及纺织品中纳米技术使用监管不善可能导致的未来后果的信息。
