ABSTRACT
Reinhard Zellner, PhD,a Julia Blechinger, PhD,b Cristoph Bräuchle, PhD,b I. Hilger,c Andreas Janshoff, PhD,d Juergen Lademann, PhD,e Volker Mailänder, PhD,f Martina C. Meinke, PhD,e G. U. Nienhaus, PhD,g,j A. Patzelt, MD,e F. Rancan,e Barbara Rothen-Rutishauser, PhD,h Roland H. Stauber, PhD,i A. A. Torrano, PhD,b Lennart Treuel, PhD,a,g and A. VogteaInstitute of Physical Chemistry, University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, GermanybDepartment of Chemistry and Center for Nanoscience, Ludwig-Maximilians-University Munich, Munich, GermanycExperimental Radiology/Research Centre Lobeda, Institute for Diagnostic Radiology, University Hospital Jena, Jena, GermanydInstitute of Physical Chemistry, University of Göttingen, Göttingen, GermanyeCharité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Department of Dermatology, Venerology and Allergology, Berlin, GermanyfUniversity Hospital Mainz, Mainz, GermanygInstitute for Applied Physics and Center for Functional Nanostructures, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Karlsruhe, GermanyhAdolphe Merkle Institute, Université de Fribourg, Marly, Switzerland iMolecular and Cellular Oncology/Mainz Screening Center, University Hospital, Mainz, Mainz, GermanyjDepartment of Physics, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, USA
32.1 IntroductionWith the advent of nanotechnology, the interaction of nanoparticles (NPs) with biological systems including living cells has become one of the most intriguing areas of basic and applied research at the interface to biology. As NPs are of the same size scale as typical cellular components and proteins, such particles are suspected to evade the natural defenses of the human body and may lead to permanent cell damage. Although there is substantial evidence from recent toxicological studies that NPs may cause adverse health effects, the fundamental cause-effect relationships have not yet been investigated. Accidental or deliberate human exposure to nanoparticles is inevitable as NPs are increasingly used. However, despite intensive investigations our current understanding of their (patho)-physiological effects on biological barriers and the underlying molecular mechanisms is still fragmentary [1-4]. Besides the wide use of nanomaterials in industrial products, the biomedical use of NPs has also enjoyed increasing interest over the past decade [5]. The ability to manipulate particular NP features such as their physical, chemical, and biological properties opens up a plethora of possibilities in rationally designing NP for drug delivery, as imaging agents, or for diagnostic purposes [6-8]. As more data regarding the potential cytotoxic properties of NPs have become available in recent years, the interest in nanotoxicology and in the safety of nanomaterials for biomedical applications continues to increase [1-4, 9].
