Nanomaterials and ceramic nanoparticles - use without side-effects?

It is expected that ceramic nanoparticles will be more intensely used in various technical, medical and biological fields in the near future. But their interaction with biological objects has not yet been completely understood. Within the scientific community, NGOs and the public, there is considerable concern about possible side-effects on health and environment. In an investigation of the behaviour of nanoparticles in a biological environment or nano-toxicological effects, three crucial phenomena have to be analysed in detail: material properties, surface state/surface reactions and uptake/transport. Unfortunately, publications on the biological effects of nanoparticles often do not sufficiently describe the physical and chemical properties of the particles under consideration or are based on overdoses. Moreover, measurement uncertainties and methodological pitfalls contribute to the divergent opinions about the possible risks of nanomaterials. Of the numerous publications, only few deliver reliable data. To obtain comparable toxicological results as achieved previously in other fields of physics and chemistry, a worldwide effort is needed to standardize the measurement methods used in nanotoxicology, focussing especially on the characterization of nanoparticles and the specific effects of the particle nature on the measurement system.