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The health and safety hazards of nanomaterials include the potential toxicity of various types of nanomaterials, as well as fire and dust explosion hazards. Because nanotechnology is a recent development, the health and safety effects of exposures to nanomaterials, and what levels of exposure may be acceptable, are subjects of ongoing research.
Nanoparticles have much larger surface area to unit mass ratios which in some cases may lead to greater pro-inflammatory effects in, for example, lung tissue. In addition, some nanoparticles seem to be able to translocate from their site of deposition to distant sites such as the blood and the brain.
Humans are exposed to toxic chemicals and microplastics at all stages in the plastics life cycle Microplastics effects on human health are of growing concern and an area of research. The tiny particles known as microplastics (MPs), have been found in various environmental and biological matrices, including air, water, food, and human tissues.
Potential risks include environmental, health, and safety issues; transitional effects such as displacement of traditional industries as the products of nanotechnology become dominant, which are of concern to privacy rights advocates. These may be particularly important if potential negative effects of nanoparticles are overlooked.
The characteristics of the nanoparticle itself plays a wide variety of roles including size, charge, composition, surface chemistry, etc. [14] Nanoparticles released into the environment can potentially interact with pre-existing contaminants, leading to cascading biological effects that are currently poorly understood.
A recent study looking at the effects of ZnO nanoparticles on human immune cells has found varying levels of susceptibility to cytotoxicity. [144] There are concerns that pharmaceutical companies, seeking regulatory approval for nano-reformulations of existing medicines, are relying on safety data produced during clinical studies of the earlier ...
Ethics of nanotechnology is the study of the ethical issues emerging from advances in nanotechnology and its impacts.. According to Andrew Chen, ethical concerns about nanotechnologies should include the possibility of their military applications, the dangers posed by self-replicant nanomachines, and their use for surveillance monitoring and tracking. [1]
Ultrafine particles (UFPs) are particulate matter of nanoscale size (less than 0.1 μm or 100 nm in diameter). [1] Regulations do not exist for this size class of ambient air pollution particles, which are far smaller than the regulated PM 10 and PM 2.5 particle classes and are believed to have several more aggressive health implications than those classes of larger particulates. [2]