(Press-News.org) Santa Barbara, CA –The Bren School-based authors of a study published Jan. 20 in the journal PLoS ONE have observed toxicity to marine organisms resulting from exposure to a nanoparticle that had not previously been shown to be toxic under similar conditions.
Lead author and assistant research biologist Robert Miller and co-authors Arturo Keller and Hunter Lenihan – both Bren School professors and lead scientists at the UC Center for Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology (UC CEIN) – Bren Phd student Samuel Bennett, and Scott Pease, a former UCSB undergraduate and current graduate student in public health at the University of Washington, found that the nanoparticulate form of titanium dioxide (TiO2) exposed to ultraviolet radiation (UVR) can be toxic to marine organisms.
"Application of nanomaterials in consumer products and manufacturing is quickly increasing, but there is concern that these materials, including nanoparticles, may harm the environment," says Miller. "The oceans could be most at risk, since wastewater and factory discharges ultimately end up there."
Nano-titanium dioxide is highly reactive to sunlight and other forms of ultraviolet radiation (UVR,) the authors write, adding that TiO2's property of generating reactive oxygen species (ROS) when exposed to UVR makes it useful in antibacterial coatings and wastewater disinfection, and potentially valuable as an anti-cancer agent.
Until now, they say, no research has demonstrated that photoactivity causes environmental toxicity of TiO2 under natural levels of UVR.
"Previous experiments have suggested that TiO2 does not affect aquatic organisms, but these experiments used artificial lighting that generated much lower levels of UVR than sunlight," Miller explains. "In these new experiments, we used lights simulating natural sunlight."
But now, the authors say, "We show that relatively low levels of ultraviolet light, consistent with those found in nature, can induce toxicity of TiO2 nanoparticles to marine phytoplankton, the most important primary producers on Earth.
"With no exposure to UVR, the TiO2 had no effect on phytoplankton, but under low-intensity UVR, ROS in seawater increased with increasing concentrations of nano- TiO2."
The concern is that rising concentrations of nano- TiO2 "may lead to increased overall oxidative stress in seawater contaminated by TiO22, and cause decreased resiliency of marine ecosystems."
The authors suggest, therefore, that UVR exposure should be considered when conducting experiments to determine the ecotoxicity of nanomaterials having photoactive potential.
### END
Nano form of titanium dioxide can be toxic to marine organisms
Ultraviolet radiation is the catalyst for cellular damage in phytoplankton
2012-01-25
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Marine mammals on the menu in many parts of world
2012-01-25
The fate of the world's great whale species commands global attention as a result of heated debate between pro and anti-whaling advocates, but the fate of smaller marine mammals is less understood, specifically because the deliberate and accidental catching and killing of dolphins, porpoises, manatees, and other warm-blooded aquatic species are rarely studied or monitored.
To shed more light on the issue, researchers from the Wildlife Conservation Society and Okapi Wildlife Associates have conducted an exhaustive global study of human consumption of marine mammals using ...
Rice lab mimics Jupiter's Trojan asteroids inside a single atom
2012-01-25
HOUSTON -- Rice University physicists have gone to extremes to prove that Isaac Newton's classical laws of motion can apply in the atomic world: They've built an accurate model of part of the solar system inside a single atom of potassium.
In a new paper published this week in Physical Review Letters, Rice's team and collaborators at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory and the Vienna University of Technology showed they could cause an electron in an atom to orbit the nucleus in precisely the same way that Jupiter's Trojan asteroids orbit the sun.
The findings uphold a ...
Fungi-filled forests are critical for endangered orchids
2012-01-25
When it comes to conserving the world's orchids, not all forests are equal. In a paper to be published Jan. 25 in the journal Molecular Ecology, Smithsonian ecologists revealed that an orchid's fate hinges on two factors: a forest's age and its fungi.
Roughly 10 percent of all plant species are orchids, making them the largest plant family on Earth. But habitat loss has rendered many threatened or endangered. This is partly due to their intimate relationship with the soil.
Orchids depend entirely on microscopic fungi in the early stages of their lives. Without the ...
Lifestyle counseling reduces time to reach treatment goals for people with diabetes
2012-01-25
BOSTON, MA -- Lifestyle counseling, practiced as part of routine care for people with diabetes, helps people more quickly lower blood glucose, blood pressure and cholesterol levels and keep them under control, according to a large, long-term study published in the February issue of Diabetes Care.
Researchers at Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) conducted a retrospective cohort study of more than 30,000 people with diabetes who received diet, exercise and weight-loss counseling in a primary care setting over the course of at least two years (with an average follow-up ...
Shoulder pain from using your ipad? Don't use it on your lap
2012-01-25
Amsterdam, NL -- The sudden popularity of tablet computers such as the Apple iPad® has not allowed for the development of guidelines to optimize users' comfort and well-being. In a new study published in Work: A Journal of Prevention, Assessment, and Rehabilitation, researchers from Harvard School of Public Health, Microsoft Corporation, and Brigham and Women's Hospital report that head and neck posture during tablet computer use can be improved by placing the tablet higher to avoid low gaze angles, and through the use of a case that provides optimal viewing angles.
"Compared ...
Smart Software Gains Momentum in Latin American Markets; Latin American Partner GOTSA Wins Inventory Optimization Opportunities with Retail Hardware and Service Parts Distribution Operations
2012-01-25
Smart Software, Inc., provider of industry-leading demand forecasting, planning, and inventory optimization solutions, today announced that two Latin American companies, Volvo Parts in Mexico, and Preca in Venezuela, purchased its flagship product, SmartForecasts , through its new reseller in Mexico and Latin America, Grupo de Outsourcing Tecnologico, S.A (GOTSA). Both customers are using the software's patented intermittent demand forecasting capabilities to optimize their inventories, reduce costs, and improve service levels. GOTSA defined and configured both solutions, ...
Treatment of silent acid reflux does not improve asthma in children, NIH study finds
2012-01-25
Adding the acid reflux drug lansoprazole to a standard inhaled steroid treatment for asthma does not improve asthma control in children who have no symptom of acid reflux, according to a new study funded in part by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health. Lansoprazole therapy slightly increased the risk of sore throats and other respiratory problems in children, however.
Results of this study, which was also sponsored by the American Lung Association (ALA), will appear Jan. 25 in the Journal of the American Medical ...
Life discovered on dead hydrothermal vents
2012-01-25
Scientists at USC have uncovered evidence that even when hydrothermal sea vents go dormant and their blistering warmth turns to frigid cold, life goes on.
Or rather, it is replaced.
A team led by USC microbiologist Katrina Edwards found that the microbes that thrive on hot fluid methane and sulfur spewed by active hydrothermal vents are supplanted, once the vents go cold, by microbes that feed on the solid iron and sulfur that make up the vents themselves.
These findings – based on samples collected for Edwards by US Navy deep sea submersible Alvin (famed for its ...
More than 7,500-year-old fish traps found in Russia
2012-01-25
Ignacio Clemente, CSIC researcher (Institució Milà I Fontanals) and manager of the project, explains: "Until now, it was thought that the Mesolithic groups had seasonal as opposed to permanent settlements. According to the results obtained during the excavations, in both Mesolithic and Neolithic periods, the human group that lived in the Dubna river basin, near Moscow, carried out productive activities during the entire year".
According to Clemente and his team, during Neolithic and Mesolithic periods, the inhabitants of this region known as Zamostje 2 preferred to hunt ...
Concurrency and Microsoft Sponsor Marketing Automation Best-Practices Event - Part of Concurrency's Ongoing Series of Educational Seminars for Business and Technology Leaders
2012-01-25
On Friday, January 27, Concurrency and Microsoft Corporation are teaming up to offer the Milwaukee business community insight into best-practice Microsoft marketing automation and web content management techniques. This educational event is part of Concurrency's ongoing series of hands-on sessions that highlight cutting-edge technology designed to boost business productivity.
Concurrency and Microsoft will demonstrate how to use Microsoft's Dynamics CRM 2011 capabilities to manage both sales and marketing across varied media. This new tool set revolutionizes how companies ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Program takes aim at drinking, unsafe sex, and sexual assault on college campuses
Inability to pay for healthcare reaches record high in U.S.
Science ‘storytelling’ urgently needed amid climate and biodiversity crisis
KAIST Develops Retinal Therapy to Restore Lost Vision
Adipocyte-hepatocyte signaling mechanism uncovered in endoplasmic reticulum stress response
Mammals were adapting from life in the trees to living on the ground before dinosaur-killing asteroid
Low LDL cholesterol levels linked to reduced risk of dementia
Thickening of the eye’s retina associated with greater risk and severity of postoperative delirium in older patients
Almost one in ten people surveyed report having been harmed by the NHS in the last three years
Enhancing light control with complex frequency excitations
New research finds novel drug target for acute myeloid leukemia, bringing hope for cancer patients
New insight into factors associated with a common disease among dogs and humans
Illuminating single atoms for sustainable propylene production
New study finds Rocky Mountain snow contamination
Study examines lactation in critically ill patients
UVA Engineering Dean Jennifer West earns AIMBE’s 2025 Pierre Galletti Award
Doubling down on metasurfaces
New Cedars-Sinai study shows how specialized diet can improve gut disorders
Making moves and hitting the breaks: Owl journeys surprise researchers in western Montana
PKU Scientists simulate the origin and evolution of the North Atlantic Oscillation
ICRAFT breakthrough: Unlocking A20’s dual role in cancer immunotherapy
How VR technology is changing the game for Alzheimer’s disease
A borrowed bacterial gene allowed some marine diatoms to live on a seaweed diet
Balance between two competing nerve proteins deters symptoms of autism in mice
Use of antifungals in agriculture may increase resistance in an infectious yeast
Awareness grows of cancer risk from alcohol consumption, survey finds
The experts that can outsmart optical illusions
Pregnancy may reduce long COVID risk
Scientists uncover novel immune mechanism in wheat tandem kinase
Three University of Virginia Engineering faculty elected as AAAS Fellows
[Press-News.org] Nano form of titanium dioxide can be toxic to marine organismsUltraviolet radiation is the catalyst for cellular damage in phytoplankton