Assessment of functional nanomaterials in medical applications: can time mend public and occupational health risks related to the products’ fate?

ABSTRACT

Surface coatings are one promising option to prevent bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation given the prevalence of antibiotic resistant bacterial strains. Titanium dioxide (TiO₂) is presently considered to be the only photocatalytic material suitable for commercial use, although the toxicity risks of TiO₂, particularly in its nanoparticulate form, have not been fully addressed. The aim of this study was to determine release of nanoparticles (NPs) from functional materials for medical applications and their aerosol formation. Further, the fate of the material with respect to its product lifetime was investigated. The present study examined the risk of NP exposure since released submicronic and inhalable manufactured nano-objects, their agglomeraates or aggregates containing Ti were detected. The coating of the material magnifies its emission levels when comparing the obtained product properties to those of an uncoated sample. The evolution of release tendecy with the material’s time of use shows that release does not vanish upon continuous material losses induced by the release, thus the risk does not diminish with time. Consequently, this nanomaterial TiO₂ needs to be avoided in healthcare settings, or, alternatively, new TiO₂-deposition techniques are required to be developed.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the French Ministry of Environment (Program 190), ANSES (Nanodata Project, APR ANSES 2012). The authors furthermore acknowledge the contributions of the French Ministry in charge of Environment, the DAMPEC scheme and the EUPLAPSCH network. Experimental work of Morgane Dalle and the manuscript’s editing by Dr. Somik Chakravarty is gratefully acknowledged.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the French Ministry of Environment [Program 190]; Sorbonne Universités [C14/0152-OTP J14R242]; French Ministry in charge of Environment [DRC]; ANSES [Nanodata Project, APR ANSES 2012].