Mar 10, 2011

Computational models predict nanoparticle toxicity

(Nanowerk News) Researchers are developing computational models to predict the behaviour of nanomaterials in biological systems. Such predictions will allow researchers to streamline and prioritise the toxicological testing of nanomaterials.

Enrico Burello and Andrew Worth, both scientists at the Joint Research Centre's Institute for Health and Consumer Protection, describe this approach ("Computational nanotoxicology: Predicting toxicity of nanoparticles") in reviewing a recent paper ("Using nano-QSAR to predict the cytotoxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles") by Jerzy Leszczynski and coworkers on the development of a Quantitative Structure–Activity Relationship (QSAR) model to predict the cytotoxicity of metal oxide nanoparticles.

Although QSAR methodologies are well-known and have been extensively used in the areas of drug discovery and chemical toxicology, their application to nanomaterials is still in its infancy. Burello & Worth's recent contribution in this domain is the JRC study ("A theoretical framework for predicting the oxidative stress potential of oxide nanoparticles") published in July 2010, proposing a theoretical framework for predicting the oxidative stress potential of oxide nanoparticles.

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