Nanomaterials in the environment: from materials to high-throughput screening to organisms

One of the challenges in the field of nanotechnology is environmental health and safety (EHS), including consideration of the properties of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) that could pose dangers to the environment. Progress in the field of nanomaterial development and nanotoxicology was presented at the International Conference on the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology at the California NanoSystems Institute (CNSI) on the UCLA campus on May 11-14, 2010. This event was cohosted by the University of California Center for the Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology (UC CEIN) and the Center for the Environmental Implications of NanoTechnology (CEINT) based at Duke University. Participants included scientists and scholars from various backgrounds, including chemistry, biology, engineering, nanomaterial science, toxicology, ecology, mathematics, sociology, and policy makers. The topics of discussion included safety evaluation of ENMs from an environmental perspective, nanotoxicology, ecotoxicology, safe design of ENMs, environmental risk assessment, public perception of nanotechnology, application of ENMs in consumer products, and many more. The UC CEIN presented data on their predictive toxicological approach to the assessment of ENM libraries, which were designed and synthesized to develop an understanding of the material properties that could lead to hazard generation at the cellular and organismal levels in the environment. This article will focus on the first metal oxide ENM library that was introduced to harmonize research activities in the UC CEIN, with particular emphasis on the safety assessment of ZnO on cells and organisms. Methods of decreasing the observed toxic effects will also be discussed as an integral component of the UC CEIN's activity in developing safer nanomaterials to lessen their environmental impacts.