The Spread of Nanotech

Nanotechnology

By working with nanoparticles, a billionth of a meter in size, scientists are opening up new fields for industry. On June 20, Nanosolar announced it would use nanomolecular components to create lower-cost solar power cells. But what about nano-drift? "During a product's life cycle ... it is probable that nanomaterials will enter the environment, and currently there is no unified plan to examine eco-toxicological effects," notes Günter Oberdörster, Ph.D. of University of Rochester's Department of Environmental Medicine, in the July 2005 Environmental Health Perspectives (EHP).

Already, nanoparticles, such as the particulates in diesel smoke, are known to penetrate deep into lung tissue, causing asthma and other health problems. A study in the June 2006 Environmental Science & Technology found that, if nanoparticles of titanium dioxide, used in many personal care products, entered the brain, they might cause the release of oxidizing chemicals which could place stress on neurons, making people more prone to neurological diseases later in life (see "Take a Powder" on p. 6). Nanoparticles known as fullerenes have been shown to act like free radicals, causing damage in the brains of largemouth bass, according to a study in the July 2004 EHP.

A coalition including Friends of the Earth (FOE) is seeking to compel stricter FDA regulation of nano-type products. FOE reports that at least 116 nano-ized personal care products are on the market, including sunscreens with titanium dioxide. However, a January 2006 Australian government survey of studies concluded that nanoparticles in sunblocks do not penetrate the skin.

On October 10, the FDA will hold a public meeting on the use of nanotech by the food and cosmetic industries. See www.fda.gov.

Cellular damage?

With close to 208 million cell phone subscribers in the United States, mobile technology has penetrated deep into the populace. But does radiation from the phones penetrate deep into your brain? The message is mixed. Microwave radiation from cell phones may damage neurons, as indicated by an animal study in the June 2003 EHP. In the March 2006 American Journal of Epidemiology, German researchers participating in a 13-country study coordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer reported that long-term cell phone users (10 years or more) may face an increased risk of gliomas, malignant cancers of the central nervous system. Their British counterparts found no increased risk, as reported in the January 2006 British Medical Journal.