Nanomaterials: Toxicity, Risk Managment and Public Perception

It is believed that the future of medicine lies in nanotechnology where the medicines would be tailor-made according to the requirement of the individual. With the amassed recognition of the potential of nanomaterials they are not only used in medicines but in many other consumer products. Nanomaterials exists in nature everywhere and many others are engineered. Because of the omnipresence of these nanoparticles human beings are blatantly exposed to them. Nevertheless, our knowledge about health and environmental risks of these engineered nanomaterials still remains limited and largely incomplete. Many studies confer their toxicity in animal models where they can lead to teratogenicity, genotoxicity and also defects in organs like liver, lungs , kidneys and immune system. However, the toxic responses depends upon many variables including size, shape, charge , composition and surface area. Nanoparticles (NPs) of same compositions can diverge in term of toxicity by changing the size, shape and charge of NPs. Likewise the time of exposure also plays very vita role in toxicity. Many available studies provide incomplete information by conducting few in vitro analyses. However, the process is so intricate that the in vitro studies are not sufficient to provide enough information to elucidate the full toxic potential. Therefore, in vivo studies are pre-requisite. This chapter provides an insight from toxicologist`s perspective on the matter, outlining possible routes of uptake by humans, known or suspected toxic effects, and the possible practical implication for human health risk assessment and public perception.