PAPER TITLE

Promising human cell-based models for nanotoxicity testing

AUTHOR

Samantha Dozier, PhD

Nanotechnology Policy Advisor
Regulatory Testing Division
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals

ABSTRACT TEXT

Nanomaterials present unique challenges to researchers seeking to assess toxicity, targeting, and chemical activity. Because animal testing has proven unpredictive, many researchers in the field of nanotechnology aspire to use high-tech in vitro methods for scientific as well as for ethical reasons.

In a recent landmark report, 'Toxicity Testing in the Twenty-first Century: A Vision and a Strategy', the National Academy of Sciences states that, “Toxicity testing is approaching a scientific pivot point…It is poised to take advantage of the revolutions in biology and biotechnology. Advances in toxicogenomics, bioinformatics, systems biology, epigenetics, and computational toxicology could transform toxicity testing from a system based on whole-animal testing to one founded primarily on in vitro methods…” The field of nanotechnology is in a position to make that vision a reality.

This review describes the benefits of using in vitro human cell-based
organotypic models and highlights some of the most promising methods for nanotoxicity studies. Included in the discussion will be human cell-based models of exposure routes (dermal fibroblasts, lung epithelial cells, and colon cells); movement across barriers (blood brain barrier, lung epithelia); target effects (astrocytes, glial cell, macrophages, Tcells, liver cells, kidney cells); and diseased tissues (liver carcinoma cells, B2- microglobulin cells, corneal cells, and lung cancer cells). In addition, lab-on-chip devices with the ability to test toxicity and targeting will be described.