The Nanotech BC Blog: Coming Soon to a Fruit Fly Larvae Near You

The intersection of nanotechnology and biology are attracting a lot of interest for many good reasons. On the one hand nanotech seems to promise new ways of curing disease and promoting health. On the other, nobody seems very sure of the extent that nanoparticles or nanotubes are harmful.

Now the brave fruit fly looks like it's about to find out:

Nanotubes Imaged In Fruit Fly Larvae

Using near-infrared fluorescence imaging, scientists at Rice University have managed to sneak a peek at single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) inside the bodies of living fruit fly larvae (Nano Lett. 2007, 7, 2650). It's the first time anyone has observed carbon nanotubes inside a living creature, according to principal investigators Kathleen M. Beckingham and R. Bruce Weisman, who think the technique could be useful for diagnosing diseases. The Rice team first fed Drosophila melanogaster larvae a steady diet of water-solubilized SWNTs. The researchers then used a near-infrared microscope and special camera to image SWNTs without harming the larvae. Neither the adult flies' viability nor their growth was reduced by ingesting the tubes. They also found that a small fraction—approximately 10^-8—of the ingested nanotubes were incorporated into the flies' organs, which suggests that SWNTs may have a negligible physiological impact on the insects.

Personally, I'm not planning on ordering a nanotube cocktail any time too soon no mater how much the flies liked it -- but the lack of damage to the larvae seems like a hopeful sign. Nanoparticles are part of the environment every time you burn a candle, but there is a strong possibility that the type and amount of nanomaterials we will all be exposed to will change.

The Nanotech BC Blog: The FDA Speaks

The USA Food and Drug Administration has come to the conclusion that they have sufficient capability to test and regulate products containing nanoparticles. Products will not need special labeling to indicate the presence of nanoparticles -- a decision that will no doubt put a number of companies at ease. More details here and here.

Is this a good thing? It's hard to say, because the decision seems to be being made based on a lack of information -- the FDA simply doesn't know enough about nanoparticles to say they are a danger. This, of course, doesn't necessarily mean some of them aren't.

It really comes down to deciding just how cautious we want to be about nanotechnology. This is a tough call to make, and I sincerely hope that the FDA knows enough about the many different properties of the many different kinds of nanoparticles to make it.

The Nanotech BC Blog: Worm's Eye View

Watching new advances in nanotechnology come rolling in everyday is exciting -- but with all the single-molecule sensors and nano-wagon wheels, it's easy to loose sight of what "nanotechnology" means to the average consumer.

For anybody interested in a worm's eye view of nanotechnology, take a few minutes to go through the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies. It's a consumer product inventory focused on nanotechnology.

Browsing the inventory is an educational experience, if only for the number of dubious claims you're likely to encounter. For a lot of products "nano" seems like magic, imparting remarkable qualities by virtue of association alone (Galaxia Nano Technology Limited Nano Cup Group Aerobics Living Supply Box.) There are also a lot of cases where limited nanotechnology, in the form of nano-particles like nano-silver is being used, even though there isn't yet a real sense of the long term health or safety consequences of some of these applications.

This is just a roundabout way of saying that nanotechnology is new and complicated. It takes time and patience to tell the snake-oil from the real medicine. Consumer groups play an important role in this process. It's also important for people to understand how really big (ironically enough) the word "nano" is -- encompassing a huge range of sciences, technologies and even particle types. Christine Peterson does a great job in today's Nanodot post of getting across how important it is for everybody, particularly consumers to recognize the variety within the nano lable.

The Nanotech BC Blog: The Customer is Always Right

Over the next few years, whether we know it or not, we will begin using and living with products that depend on the sometimes uncanny properties that can come from nanotech. On the verge of any change that promises to saturate our lives so completely, there's an obligation to ask a simple question: What can go wrong?

Part of the mandate of Nanotech BC is to encourage discussion about NE3LS -- Nanotechnology, Environment, Ethics, Economics, Legal and Safety issues. We need to find ways to enjoy the rewards of nanotechnology without making mistakes that harm health or the environment.

As nanotechnology moves into the marketplace, the roll of watchdog will increasingly be taken up by business and consumer groups. Consumer Report is already doing that, looking at nanoparticles in sunscreen. Nanowerk contributes to the analysis, looking at how or if nanoparticles might be a danger.

Criticism and analysis is a sign of success. The fact that consumer publications are aware of nanotechnology speaks to the growing acceptance of nanotech. Thorough study of any new material is essential, but laboratory testing is only one part of the equation -- consumers need to be informed. Everybody has a stake in the development of safe nanotech, and everybody should have a voice.