Ramanathan Amall
Department of Physics, University of Jordan, Amman, 11942, Jordan.
Appl Microsc. 2019 Apr 29;49(1):2. doi: 10.1007/s42649-019-0004-6.
Nanomaterials (NMs) find widespread use in different industries that range from agriculture, food, medicine, pharmaceuticals, and electronics to cosmetics. It is the exceptional properties of these materials at the nanoscale, which make them successful as growth promoters, drug carriers, catalysts, filters and fillers, but a price must be paid via the potential toxity of these materials. The harmful effects of nanoparticles (NPs) to environment, human and animal health needs to be investigated and critically examined, to find appropriate solutions and lower the risks involved in the manufacture and use of these exotic materials.The vast number and complex interaction of NM/NPs with different biological systems implies that there is no universal toxicity mechanism or assessment method. The various challenges need to be overcome and a number of research studies have been conducted during the past decade on different NMs to explore the possible mechanisms of uptake, concentrations/dosage and toxicity levels. This review article examines critically the recent reports in this field to summarize and present opportunities for safer design using case studies from published literature.
纳米材料（NMs）在不同行业有着广泛应用，涵盖农业、食品、医学、制药、电子以及化妆品等领域。正是这些材料在纳米尺度下的特殊性能，使其成为成功的生长促进剂、药物载体、催化剂、过滤器和填料，但这些材料潜在的毒性也让我们为此付出代价。纳米颗粒（NPs）对环境、人类和动物健康的有害影响需要进行调查和严格审查，以找到合适的解决方案，并降低这些外来材料制造和使用过程中涉及的风险。纳米材料/纳米颗粒与不同生物系统的大量且复杂的相互作用意味着不存在通用的毒性机制或评估方法。过去十年间，人们开展了大量研究以应对各种挑战，针对不同的纳米材料探索其摄取、浓度/剂量及毒性水平的可能机制。本文通过批判性审视该领域的最新报告，利用已发表文献中的案例研究进行总结，并呈现更安全设计的机会。
