All Knowledge & Insights By Date

Registration is open for the U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative’s (NNI) April 27, 2021, webinar on “What We Know about NanoEHS:  Environment.”  The webinar will feature experts from diverse disciplines to share their perspectives on key findings on the effects of engineered nanomaterials in the environment.  Elijah Petersen, Ph.D., Research Scientist, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), will moderate the panel, which will include: Jorge...

NanoHarmony held a webinar on March 17, 2021, on “Identification and solving barriers for translating science to regulation and standards.”  According to NanoHarmony, the webinar focused on helping to identify the obstacles faced by stakeholders in developing new test methods and having them introduced as new test guidelines and guidance documents.  A recording of the webinar is now available online, as well as the following slides: Claus Svendsen, CEH, welcome and...

On March 17, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the issuance of the final guidance document entitled "Guidance for Waiving Acute Dermal Toxicity Tests for Pesticide Technical Chemicals & Supporting Retrospective Analysis" (EPA 705-G-2020-3722; Docket ID: EPA-HQ-OPP-2016-0093) that expands the potential for data waivers for acute dermal studies to single technical active ingredients (AI) used to formulate end-use products. This new guidance builds upon...

The European Union (EU) Observatory for Nanomaterials (EUON) announced on March 19, 2021, that it is looking for topic suggestions that could be addressed in its upcoming studies.  According to EUON, up to three studies are conducted annually to address knowledge gaps on nanomaterials that are of interest to the general public and the research community.  EUON states that it seeks studies that address: Questions relating to the health and safety of nanomaterials, including...

By Lynn L. Bergeson  On February 23, 2021, the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work (EU-OSHA) announced that in association with other relevant Directorates-General (DG) of the European Commission (EC), DG Environment has opened a call for applications to select members for an expert group, the High-Level Roundtable on Implementation of the Chemicals Strategy for Sustainability. According to EU-OSHA, the expert group’s mission “is to set the Chemicals Strategy for...

Registration is open for the U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative’s (NNI) March 23, 2021, webinar on “What We Know About NanoEHS:  Human Exposure.”  The webinar will feature experts from diverse disciplines to share their perspectives on key findings in quantifying and assessing the effects of human exposure to nanomaterials.  Keana Scott, Ph.D., Physical Scientist, Materials Measurement Science Division, National Institute of Standards and Technology...

The March 2021 issue of Environmental Factor, a monthly newsletter published by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), includes an item entitled “New graphene nanochannel filters hold promise for contaminant clean-up.”  According to the item, an NIEHS-funded study found a new strategy to design nanomaterials to filter contaminants better from water.  To improve the usefulness of graphene oxide nanosheets for filtering contaminants from liquid, the...

In December 2020, the European Commission (EC) Directorate-General (DG) for Research and Innovation opened a call for tenders for “Providing market data about nanotechnology to enhance transparency.”  The description states that the study on nanotechnology/nanomaterials is aimed to provide a new set of data from the period of 2017 to 2020 into the NanoData database, available on the European Union (EU) Observatory for Nanomaterials (EUON) website.  This study will follow up on...

By   Lynn L. Bergeson  EPA announced on January 8, 2021, that it released an updated and improved version of OncoLogic™, a system used to evaluate a chemical’s potential to cause cancer. EPA states that, in partnership with the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), it developed “a more user-friendly version of the most widely used piece of this system, greatly expanding its usability across the agency and the scientific community.”...

By Lynn L. Bergeson  On February 1, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana granted the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) January 31, 2021, unopposed motion to vacate and remand its January 6, 2021, final rule on “Strengthening Transparency in Pivotal Science Underlying Significant Regulatory Actions and Influential Scientific Information” (86 Fed. Reg. 469). EDF v. EPA, No. 4:21-cv-03-BMM. On January 11, 2021, the Environmental Defense...

On February 25, 2021, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) will hold a webinar on “Assessing the dispersion stability and dissolution (rate) of nanomaterials in the environment” to discuss the scope, content, and use of Test Guideline No. 318:  Dispersion Stability of Nanomaterials in Simulated Environmental Media and its accompanying guidance document.  According to OECD, “[t]he increased production and wide usage of manufactured...

Registration is now open for the U.S. National Nanotechnology Initiative’s (NNI) February 9, 2021, webinar, “What We Know about NanoEHS:  How It All Began.”  NNI states that its 2021 NanoEHS webinar series will focus on sharing what it now knows about the environmental, health, and safety aspects of engineered nanomaterials (nanoEHS).  According to NNI, throughout the series, “experts will share the big take-home EHS messages with the broader nanotechnology...

By  Lynn L. Bergeson and Ligia Duarte Botelho, M.A. Researchers at Swansea University’s Energy Safety Research Institute have developed a new method that produces spheres that have strong capacity for carbon capture and work at a large scale. Described as “[a] fast, green and one-step method for producing porous carbon spheres, which are a vital component for carbon capture technology and for new ways of storing renewable energy,” the method was developed by a...

By  Lynn L. Bergeson and Ligia Duarte Botelho, M.A. The Scientific Research Honor Society (Sigma Xi) is accepting nominations until January 31, 2021, for awards that recognize achievements in science or engineering research and communication. Nominations are being accepted for the following awards: Gold Key Award – Presented to an individual who has made contributions to their profession and fostered critical innovations to enhance the health of the research enterprise,...

On January 5, 2021, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) posted a Science Blog item entitled “Understanding the Broad Class of Carbon Nanotubes and Nanofibers (CNT/F) Used or Produced in U.S. Facilities.”  The item summarizes a recently published article in the journal Particle and Fibre Toxicology, “Physicochemical characterization and genotoxicity of the broad class of carbon nanotubes and nanofibers used or produced in U.S. facilities” that...

On January 26, 2021, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) will hold a webinar on Guidance Document on Aquatic and Sediment Toxicological Testing of Nanomaterials (No. 317).  The webinar will discuss the scope and use of the guidance document, which addresses practical aspects of carrying out valid tests on nanomaterials, and modifications or additions to OECD Test Guidelines procedures intended to improve the accuracy of test...

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has posted a report entitled Ability of biopersistent/biodurable manufactured nanomaterials (MNs) to induce lysosomal membrane permeabilization (LMP) as a prediction of their long-term toxic effects.  The report describes “the expanding knowledge on the implications and biological significance of lysosomal and autophagy dysfunction and the subsequent assembly and activation of inflammasome NLRP3 induced by biodurable...

Registration is now open for the National Nanotechnology Initiative’s (NNI) 2021 NNI Strategic Planning Stakeholder Workshop:  Charting the Path Forward, which will be held January 11-13, 2021.  NNI states that over the past 20 years, it has supported nanotechnology discovery, development, and deployment and has nurtured the strong ecosystem that exists today.  Building on this foundation, nanoscience will underpin a wide range of advanced technologies and enable...

On November 10, 2020, the Senate Committee on Appropriations released 12 fiscal year (FY) 2021 appropriations bills and explanatory statements.  The bill for the Department of the Interior, environment, and related agencies includes funding for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).  The explanatory statement for the bill includes language regarding nanomaterials research at EPA and states: The Committee notes the increased capabilities that the Food and...

The Sustainable Nanotechnology Organization (SNO) and the Nanotechnology, Occupational and Environmental Health (NanOEH) Committee have partnered to present the 9th NANO Conference.  This conference combines the interests of SNO and NanOEH by offering a virtual program containing sessions that are of interest to both groups. SNO is a permanent non-profit corporation that provides the infrastructure to carry out its mission of research, education, and responsibility related to both...