Emerging Aquatic Contamination of Nanomaterials and its Ecological Risk

1.はじめに ナノマテリアルとは,基本的には物体の大き さを表す外寸(タテ・ヨコ・高さ)のうち少な くともひとつの大きさが100nm(ナノ・メート ル,1億分の1メートル)以下であり,電気 的・物理化学的あるいは生物・医学的な性質を 持つように合成された固体・コロイド・イオン などの化合物を指す。ナノマテリアルは多く の分野の化学製品を進歩させると期待されてお り,既に多くの製品が世に出されている。1993 年に single-walled carbon nanotubes(SWNTs, 単層カーボンナノチューブ)が発見されて以来, ナノテクノロジー産業はカーボンナノチューブ を含む新規化合物あるいはナノサイズに加工し ABSTRACT Emerging nanotechnology has received great attention in recent years because of its widescale use in consumer products, healthcare, and medical applications, among others. Due to such rapid growth of nanomaterial manufacturing and use, these materials will inevitably be released into the environment. Currently little information exists on the fate and toxicological effects of nanoparticles in the environment including aquatic matrices. In this review, we discuss 1)possible ecological risks of silver nanomaterials as unbiodegradable and bioaccumulative contaminants, 2)environmental application of nanomaterials, 3) biological effects of nanomaterials to aquatic invertebrates and fishes, including biological fate and their indirect effects, 4)problems on nano-toxicity research, 5)regulatory science, and 6) nano-science and ecological risk. Here we highlight the need for further researches in order to understand the potential environmental/ecological hazard and risk of nanomaterials, with scientifically validated and environmentally relevant testing methods.