Engineered Nanomaterials and Plant Interactions: Uptake, Biotransformations and Physiological Effects

纳米技术的可持续和负责任的发展需要一个综合和主动的战略，以识别和评估可能对工人、消费者和环境造成的物质风险。这些数据既可以用来最大限度地减少工程纳米材料（ENP）暴露的意外后果，也可以通过实现安全的纳米材料设计、使用和处置实践来加速创新。这一战略要求对纳米技术风险的研究与纳米技术本身的可能应用一样广泛和深远。纳米级先进材料的研究和工业生产的迅速发展增加了这些技术影响环境的潜力。为了适当地解决这个广泛的问题，了解植物和纳米材料相互作用的影响和作用至关重要。植物是生态系统中的关键物种，环境科学的历史清楚地表明，它们可以以各种方式影响环境影响。当植物受到外来物质的影响时，对生态系统健康的相应后果是广泛的。此外，植物可以通过特异性和非特异性生化过程浓缩、钝化甚至降解污染物。研究人员将研究工程纳米材料（ENM）和植物之间的相互作用。这些数据对于准确的生命周期和生态系统风险评估至关重要，而这两者都是可持续纳米技术的基础。在这项工作中需要验证的一个假设是，在某些情况下，植物能够吸收纳米材料。确定纳米颗粒特性（组成、大小和表面化学）的组合，包括潜在的植物蛋白/多糖涂层（来自根渗出物和周转量或植物组织内），促进吸收和同化是该奖项的主要目标。特别令人感兴趣的是积累过程的定量表征，此外，如果涉及植物的可食用部分，可能导致整个食物网中潜在有害物质的转移。与植物吸收和同化研究相结合，额外的实验旨在探索可能影响工程（通常是有机）ENM涂层和ENM的已知植物生化（生物转化）过程/途径，包括纳米材料的植物毒性，并评估材料对植物总体发育和健康的影响。这项工作将为纳米技术决策者和工业界提供重要的信息。其相关性主要体现在三个方面：首先，该研究将填补植物与环境磷素相互作用的明显数据空白，并将评估物种差异；其次，要考虑的材料的广度足够广泛，以涵盖各种现有和未来的工程纳米材料；最后，植物在任何污染物对环境影响的描述中所扮演的核心角色。研究结果将使纳米技术风险管理战略能够确保对生态负责的使用和处置。

The sustainable and responsible development of nanotechnology requires an integrated and proactive strategy to recognize and assess possible material risks to workers, consumers and the environment. Such data can be used to both minimize unintended consequence of engineered nanomaterial (ENP) exposures as well as to accelerate innovation by enabling safe nanomaterial design, use and disposal practices. This strategy requires that research into nanotechnology risk(s) be as broad and far-reaching as the possible applications of nanotechnology itself. Rapid developments in research and industrial production of advanced materials at the nanoscale have increased the potential for such technologies to impact the environment. To appropriately address this broad issue, it is critical to understand the impact and role of plant and nanomaterial interactions. Plants are critical species in the ecosystem, and the history of environmental science makes apparent the diverse ways in which they can influence environmental impact. When plants are affected by foreign substances, corresponding consequences to ecosystem health are wide ranging. Furthermore, plants can concentrate, passivate and even degrade contaminants through specific and nonspecific biochemical processes. Researchers will study the interactions between engineered nanoscale materials (ENM) and plants. Such data is critical for accurate life cycle(s) and ecosystem risk(s) assessments, both of which are the foundation for sustainable nanotechnology. A hypothesis to be tested in this work is that under certain circumstances plants are capable of nanomaterial uptake. Defining the combination of nanoparticle characteristics (composition, size and surface chemistries) including potential plant protein/polysaccharide coatings (from root exudates and turnover or within plant tissue) that facilitate uptake and assimilation is a major goal of this award. Of particular interest is quantitative characterization of the accumulation process and, furthermore, if edible portions of the plant are involved which could lead to transfer of potentially harmful materials up the throughout the food web. Interwoven into plant uptake and assimilation studies, additional experiments are designed to probe known plant biochemical(biotransformation) processes/pathways that may affect engineered (often organic) ENM coatings and ENM directly including nanomaterial phytotoxicity and evaluate material impacts on plant gross development and health. The work will result in important information for both nanotechnology policymakers and industry alike. The relevance derives from three specific features: first, the research will fill the glaring data gap in plant-ENP interactions and will evaluate species differences; second, the breadth of the materials to be considered is broad enough to encompass a wide variety of existing and future engineered nanomaterials; and finally, the central role that plants play in any description of environmental impact of contaminants. Results will enable nanotechnology risk management strategies that ensure eco-responsible use and disposal.