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The Center for the Environmental Implications of NanoTechnology (CEINT) seeks comments on the NANoREG-proposed ISA-TAB-nano templates.  According to CEINT, the ISA-TAB-nano file sharing format, developed under the National Cancer Informatics Program Nanotechnology Working Group (NCIP NanoWG), is an accepted ASTM standard (ASTM International E2909-13).  In 2016, the European Union NANoREG project adopted and adapted the ISA-TAB-nano format to organize consistently the results...

On June 14, 2017, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a Federal Register notice announcing the availability of a final test guideline, Laboratory Product Performance Testing Methods for Bed Bug Pesticide Products; OCSPP Test Guideline 810.3900, part of a series of test guidelines established by the EPA’s Office of Chemical Safety and Pollution Prevention (OCSPP) for use in testing pesticides and chemical substances.  82 Fed. Reg. 27254.  EPA states that this...

The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) recently published standard ISO/TR 19601:2017, “Nanotechnologies — Aerosol generation for air exposure studies of nano-objects and their aggregates and agglomerates (NOAA).”  ISO states that, to evaluate the inhalation toxicity of NOAA, it is important to consider certain parameters that make the toxicity testing relevant to human exposure.  Three critical aspects to consider when designing and conducting an inhalation...

The World Health Organization’s (WHO) International Program on Chemical Safety (IPCS) published a draft Environmental Health Criteria (EHC) Document, Principles and Methods to Assess the Risk of Immunotoxicity Associated with Exposure to Nanomaterials.  According to IPCS, the target audience is risk assessors in a regulatory setting, researchers, and industry that needs to provide the data for assessment.  The draft EHC Document states that recent reports have identified...

On June 14, 2017, the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) announced the launch of the European Union (EU) Observatory for Nanomaterials (EUON).  ECHA states that EUON “offers a unique web-based information point with factual and neutral content about nanomaterials on the EU market.”  EUON is targeted at a wide audience, including consumers, workers, regulators, and scientists.  EUON provides information on uses, health and safety issues, research, regulation, and...

Germany’s Federal Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (BAuA) has published the final report for the project “Methodology for the Identification of Granular Biopersistent Particles (GBP) at Workplaces.”  The final report states that the category includes respirable granular biopersistent particles without known significant specific toxicity.  This category comprises various materials such as minerals, metals, metal oxides, or polymers that show a negligible...

The American Chemical Society (ACS) announced on May 3, 2017, publication of an article entitled “Inhaled Nanoparticles Accumulate at Sites of Vascular Disease” in ACS Nano.  According to ACS, scientists have found evidence in human and animal studies that inhaled nanoparticles can travel from the lungs into the bloodstream, potentially explaining the link between air pollution and cardiovascular disease.  ACS states in its press release that in the study, 14 healthy...

The May 1, 2017, issue of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) TechDirect includes an item on the availability of the Taking Nanotechnological Remediation Processes from Lab Scale to End User Applications for the Restoration of a Clean Environment (NanoRem) Toolbox.  NanoRem is a research project funded through the European Commission’s Seventh Framework Program for Research and Technological Development.  EPA describes the NanoRem Toolbox as the...

On April 12, 2017, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) Board of Scientific Counselors (BSC) held its 68th meeting.  The BSC’s primary activity is to provide advice on NIOSH’s occupational safety and health research and prevention programs.  The BSC also advises on standards of scientific excellence, current needs in the field of occupational safety and health, and the applicability and dissemination of research findings.  Dr. Jenny Roberts,...

NanoMONITOR, a project partly funded by the European Commission Life+ with grant agreement LIFE14 ENV/ES/000662, is intended to develop a real-time information and monitoring system to support the risk assessment of nanomaterials under the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation.  The overall objective of the NanoMONITOR project is to improve the use of environmental monitoring data to support the implementation of REACH and to promote the...