Thermodynamic and electron paramagnetic resonance descriptors of TiO nanoforms interaction with plasma albumin: The interplay between energetic parameters and nanomaterial's toxicity.

Protein-nanomaterial interaction is a topic of great interest for nanotechnology research, particularly for advancing strategies in nanomedicine and nanosafety. This study explores the thermodynamic signatures associated with the interactions of six TiO nanoforms, (differing in their crystalline structure, surface properties and particle size) with bovine serum albumin as model protein. By integrating findings from electron paramagnetic resonance spectroscopy (EPR) regarding the free radical generation following interaction, together with information on the stability and conformational changes of the protein during adsorption on TiO nanomaterials, we aim to elucidate the binding mechanisms and identify the primary factors influencing nanomaterial's reactivity.

A Nano Risk Governance Portal supporting risk governance of nanomaterials and nano-enabled products.

Risk governance (RG) of nanomaterials (NMs) has been at the focus of the Horizon 2020 Programme of the European Union, through the funding of three research projects (Gov4Nano, NANORIGO, RISKGONE). The extensive collaboration of the three projects, in various scientific topics, aimed to enhance RG of NMs and provide a solid scientific basis for effective collaboration of the various types of stakeholders involved. In this paper the development of a digital Nano Risk Governance Portal (NRGP) and associated information technology (IT) infrastructure supporting the risk governance of (engineered) nanomaterials and nano-enabled products, is presented, alongside considerations for future work and enhancement within the domain of Advanced Materials (AdMa).

Dynamic QSAR modeling for predicting in vivo genotoxicity and inflammation induced by nanoparticles and advanced materials: a time-dose-property/response approach.

Predicting the health risks of nanoparticles (NPs) and advanced materials (AdMa) is a critical challenge. Due to the complexity and time-consuming nature of experimental testing, there is a reliance on in silico methods such as quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR), which, while effective, often fail to capture the dynamic nature of material activity over time-essential for reliable risk assessment. This study develops dynamic QSAR models using machine learning to predict toxicological responses, such as inflammation and genotoxicity, following pulmonary exposure to 39 AdMa across various post-exposure time points and dose levels.

European harmonization of asbestos exposure assessment: comparing PCM, SEM, and TEM to derive conversion factors.

After the European ban on the use of asbestos, exposure assessment of asbestos became imperative for ensuring compliance with safety standards. However, each European country has their own legislation and requirements, including measurement strategies, analytical techniques such as the microscope used as well as occupational exposure limits (OELs). The recent EU directive (EU) 2023/2668 significantly lowered the OEL for asbestos from 100,000 fibres/m³ 8-h time-weighted average to either 2,000 fibres/m³ when counting fibres between 0.

Lower chlorinated PCBs accumulate in demolition workers while working on a contaminated worksite.

Several buildings in a Danish social housing estate exceeded indoor air guidance values for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), leading to their demolition. Here, we conducted a biomonitoring study among the workers on-site (n = 24) to evaluate their exposure to all 209 PCBs across the two-year demolition. We compared their PCB serum concentrations and accumulation to those of demolition workers at other worksites (n = 21) and office workers (n = 17).

Indoor paint life cycle particle release: Safer-by-design products and the importance of choosing the right formula.

In 2020, the European Commission published a regulation that states all producers of white paints containing titanium dioxide (TiO) must provide a warning label on their products. Exposure during the production and application of products containing TiO can be harmful, and therefore these products must be labeled as "may cause cancer." The paint industry is a major user of TiO pigment.

Governance of advanced materials: Shaping a safe and sustainable future.

The past few decades of managing the uncertain risks associated with nanomaterials have provided valuable insights (knowledge gaps, tools, methods, etc.) that are equally important to promote safe and sustainable development and use of advanced materials. Based on these insights, the current paper proposes several actions to optimize the risk and sustainability governance of advanced materials.

A Screening Approach to the Safe-and-Sustainable-by-Design Development of Advanced Insulation Materials.

Herein, a Safe-and-Sustainable-by-Design (SSbD) screening strategy on four different inorganic aerogel mats and two conventional mineral wools for ranking purposes is demonstrated. Given that they do not consist of particles, the release is first simulated, addressing three occupational exposure scenarios, realistic for their intended use as building insulators. No exposure to consumers nor to the environment is foreseen in the use phase, however, aerosols may be released during mat installation, posing an inhalation risk for workers.

Physicochemical properties of 26 carbon nanotubes as predictors for pulmonary inflammation and acute phase response in mice following intratracheal lung exposure.

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) vary in physicochemical properties which makes risk assessment challenging. Mice were pulmonary exposed to 26 well-characterized CNTs using the same experimental design and followed for one day, 28 days or 3 months. This resulted in a unique dataset, which was used to identify physicochemical predictors of pulmonary inflammation and systemic acute phase response.

Development of handling energy factors for use of dustiness data in exposure assessment modelling.

Several exposure assessment models use dustiness as an input parameter for scaling or estimating exposure during powder handling. Use of different dustiness methods will result in considerable differences in the dustiness values as they are based on different emission generation principles. EN17199:2019 offers 4 different dustiness test methods considering different dust release scenarios (e.

TRAAC framework to improve regulatory acceptance and wider usability of tools and methods for safe innovation and sustainability of manufactured nanomaterials.

There has been an increasing use of advanced materials, particularly manufactured nanomaterials, in industrial applications and consumer products in the last two decades. It has instigated concerns about the sustainability, in particular, risks and uncertainties regarding the interactions of the manufactured nanomaterials with humans and the environment. Consequently, significant resources in Europe and beyond have been invested into the development of tools and methods to support risk mitigation and risk management, and thus facilitate the research and innovation process of manufactured nanomaterials.

Single-Walled vs. Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes: Influence of Physico-Chemical Properties on Toxicogenomics Responses in Mouse Lungs.

Single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) are nanomaterials with one or multiple layers of carbon sheets. While it is suggested that various properties influence their toxicity, the specific mechanisms are not completely known. This study was aimed to determine if single or multi-walled structures and surface functionalization influence pulmonary toxicity and to identify the underlying mechanisms of toxicity.

Towards harmonisation of testing of nanomaterials for EU regulatory requirements on chemical safety - A proposal for further actions.

Over the recent years, EU chemicals legislation, guidance and test guidelines have been developed or adapted for nanomaterials to facilitate safe use of nanomaterials. This paper provides an overview of the information requirements across different EU regulatory areas. For each information requirement, a group of 22 experts identified potential needs for further action to accommodate guidance and test guidelines to nanomaterials.

Safe(r) by design guidelines for the nanotechnology industry.

Expectations for safer and sustainable chemicals and products are growing to comply with the United Nations and European strategies for sustainability. The application of Safe(r) by Design (SbD) in nanotechnology implies an iterative process where functionality, human health and safety, environmental and economic impact and cost are assessed and balanced as early as possible in the innovation process and updated at each step. The EU H2020 NanoReg2 project was the first European project to implement SbD in six companies handling and/or manufacturing nanomaterials (NMs) and nano-enabled products (NEP).

Blueprint for a self-sustained European Centre for service provision in safe and sustainable innovation for nanotechnology.

The coming years are expected to bring rapid changes in the nanotechnology regulatory landscape, with the establishment of a new framework for nano-risk governance, in silico approaches for characterisation and risk assessment of nanomaterials, and novel procedures for the early identification and management of nanomaterial risks. In this context, Safe(r)-by-Design (SbD) emerges as a powerful preventive approach to support the development of safe and sustainable (SSbD) nanotechnology-based products and processes throughout the life cycle. This paper summarises the work undertaken to develop a blueprint for the deployment and operation of a permanent European Centre of collaborating laboratories and research organisations supporting safe innovation in nanotechnologies.

Theoretical Background of Occupational-Exposure Models-Report of an Expert Workshop of the ISES Europe Working Group "Exposure Models".

On 20 October 2020, the Working Group "Exposure Models" of the Europe Regional Chapter of the International Society of Exposure Science (ISES Europe) organised an online workshop to discuss the theoretical background of models for the assessment of occupational exposure to chemicals. In this report, participants of the workshop with an active role before and during the workshop summarise the most relevant discussion points and conclusions of this well-attended workshop. ISES Europe has identified exposure modelling as one priority area for the strategic development of exposure science in Europe in the coming years.

Influence of Pre-Dispersion Media on the Batch Reactor Dissolution Behavior of AlO Coated TiO (NM-104) and Two ZnO (NM-110 and NM-111) Nanomaterials in Biologically Relevant Test Media.

Dissolution plays an important role on pulmonary toxicity of nanomaterials (NMs). The influence of contextual parameters on the results from dissolution testing needs to be identified to improve the generation of relevant and comparable data. This study investigated how pre-dispersions made in water, low-calcium Gamble's solution, phagolysosomal simulant fluid (PSF), and 0.

Validation and Demonstration of an Atmosphere-Temperature-pH-Controlled Stirred Batch Reactor System for Determination of (Nano)Material Solubility and Dissolution Kinetics in Physiological Simulant Lung Fluids.

In this study, we present a dissolution test system that allows for the testing of dissolution of nano- and micrometer size materials under highly controlled atmospheric composition (O and CO), temperature, and pH. The system enables dissolution testing in physiological simulant fluids (here low-calcium Gamble's solution and phagolysosomal simulant fluid) and derivation of the temporal dissolution rates and reactivity of test materials. The system was validated considering the initial dissolution rates and dissolution profiles using eight different materials (γ-AlO, TiO (NM-104 coated with AlO and glycerin), ZnO (NM-110 and NM-113, uncoated; and NM-111 coated with triethoxycaprylsilane), SiO (NM-200-synthetic amorphous silica), CeO (NM-212), and bentonite (NM-600) showing high intra-laboratory repeatability and robustness across repeated testing (I, II, and III) in triplicate (replicate 1, 2, and 3) in low-calcium Gamble's solution.

Historical Asbestos Measurements in Denmark-A National Database.

Objectives: Due to the long lag-time for health outcomes, historical asbestos exposure measurements are valuable to support assessments of associated occupational health effects, and also to assess time trends and effects of preventive measures.

Methods: Different sources of stored data were collated, assessed and refined to create a harmonized database on historical asbestos fibre concentrations measured in specific work tasks and different industries. The final database contains 9236 asbestos measurements from Danish workplaces collected from 1971 to 1997.

Evaluation of One- and Two-Box Models as Particle Exposure Prediction Tools at Industrial Scale.

One- and two-box models have been pointed out as useful tools for modelling indoor particle exposure. However, model performance still needs further testing if they are to be implemented as trustworthy tools for exposure assessment. The objective of this work is to evaluate the performance, applicability and reproducibility of one- and two-box models on real-world industrial scenarios.

Understanding the impact of more realistic low-dose, prolonged engineered nanomaterial exposure on genotoxicity using 3D models of the human liver.

Background: With the continued integration of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) into everyday applications, it is important to understand their potential for inducing adverse human health effects. However, standard in vitro hazard characterisation approaches suffer limitations for evaluating ENM and so it is imperative to determine these potential hazards under more physiologically relevant and realistic exposure scenarios in target organ systems, to minimise the necessity for in vivo testing. The aim of this study was to determine if acute (24 h) and prolonged (120 h) exposures to five ENMs (TiO, ZnO, Ag, BaSO and CeO) would have a significantly different toxicological outcome (cytotoxicity, (pro-)inflammatory and genotoxic response) upon 3D human HepG2 liver spheroids.

Towards FAIR nanosafety data.

Nanotechnology is a key enabling technology with billions of euros in global investment from public funding, which include large collaborative projects that have investigated environmental and health safety aspects of nanomaterials, but the reuse of accumulated data is clearly lagging behind. Here we summarize challenges and provide recommendations for the efficient reuse of nanosafety data, in line with the recently established FAIR (findable, accessible, interoperable and reusable) guiding principles. We describe the FAIR-aligned Nanosafety Data Interface, with an aggregated findability, accessibility and interoperability across physicochemical, bio-nano interaction, human toxicity, omics, ecotoxicological and exposure data.

Occupational Exposure and Environmental Release: The Case Study of Pouring TiO and Filler Materials for Paint Production.

Pulmonary exposure to micro- and nanoscaled particles has been widely linked to adverse health effects and high concentrations of respirable particles are expected to occur within and around many industrial settings. In this study, a field-measurement campaign was performed at an industrial manufacturer, during the production of paints. Spatial and personal measurements were conducted and results were used to estimate the mass flows in the facility and the airborne particle release to the outdoor environment.

NanoSolveIT Project: Driving nanoinformatics research to develop innovative and integrated tools for nanosafety assessment.

Nanotechnology has enabled the discovery of a multitude of novel materials exhibiting unique physicochemical (PChem) properties compared to their bulk analogues. These properties have led to a rapidly increasing range of commercial applications; this, however, may come at a cost, if an association to long-term health and environmental risks is discovered or even just perceived. Many nanomaterials (NMs) have not yet had their potential adverse biological effects fully assessed, due to costs and time constraints associated with the experimental assessment, frequently involving animals.