The prestigious Nature Nanotechnology journal has published an article on the challenges of the effective use of nanomaterial safety data. The paper is part of the NanoReg2 project carried out by an international scientific consortium and funded by the HORYZONT 2020 Framework Programme, in which the University of Gdańsk participated as a partner. One of the co-authors of the paper is prof. dr hab. Tomasz Puzyn from the Faculty of Chemistry.
prof. dr hab. Tomasz Puzyn
Nanotechnology is counted among the so-called key enabling technologies. Nanomaterials are used in an increasing number of products used in everyday life (sports equipment, electronics), cosmetics (UV filter creams), agriculture (selective biocides) and medicine (carriers of medicines and - more recently - vaccines based on RNA technology). It is extremely important in this context to ensure that newly designed nanoparticles are safe for humans and the environment.
The safety of nanotechnology has become one of the priorities of several European projects funded by the 7th Framework Programme and the HORIZON 2020 Framework Programme. Considerable resources have been invested in obtaining laboratory data to assess the risks associated with the use of nanoparticles with different chemical structures and physical properties (e.g. size, shape). A major challenge at present is to use this data to predict the properties, including toxicity to humans and environmental organisms, of newly designed nanoparticles. This would allow for the elimination of potential hazards even before their creation and guarantee that products of modern nanotechnology are safe by design.
- 'In this paper, we have analysed the conditions that should be met to face this challenge. An important requirement is the compliance of data with the FAIR standard (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable),' - explains prof. Tomasz Puzyn.
The paper also presents a FAIR-compliant interface for nanotechnology safety data covering physicochemical properties, bio-nano interactions, toxicity for humans, data from transcriptomic, proteomic and metabolomic studies, ecotoxicology and exposure. A pathway for optimised use of existing data that avoids duplication of cost and effort and contributes to the safety of products of modern nanotechnology is illustrated with concrete examples.