Nanomaterials in environment: release, compartmental transformation, and nanotoxicity

In recent years, the development of nanotechnology-based commercial products released massive quantities of manufactured nanoparticles (MNPs) in the different environmental compartments during the entire life cycle of nanoenabled products. Once released in the environment, both biotic and abiotic factors and MNP’s intrinsic properties mediated the transformations and ultimate fate of transformed products. In most cases, MNPs aggrandize the toxicity of contaminants by the “Trojan-horse” mechanism as these can also act as a vector for transporting contaminants to the organisms across the cellular barriers and induce reactive oxygen species mediated toxicity in multicellular organisms. Moreover, MNPs can potentially transfer through the food chain from producers to consumers at the higher trophic level. Accumulated MNPs in the organisms undergo biotransformation and degradation process mediated by cellular machinery, and resulting products are either excreted out of the body through renal and biliary pathways or reused in the assimilation of body mass. Thus, certain sustainable approaches should be adopted to design eco-friendly nanoenabled products without affecting their original application.