Scientists create computer model to show how nanoparticles harm cells

Nanoparticles are being massed produced for an enormous variety of applications and products, from performance-enhancing units for solar cells, to frames for tennis racquet’s and bicycles, to transparent sunscreen which turns opaque in the presence of ultraviolet light. However, mounting evidence suggests that nanoparticles of many different shapes and sizes are toxic, to the extent that some types are being dubbed “the new asbestos.” Scientists have been warning that nanoparticles might be dangerous for the last five years, or longer, saying that the tiny particles have a strong affinity for animal DNA. Some types of nanoparticles can attach to animal DNA in a way that prevents immune responses to the particles, and also prevents cells from self-repairing. Cellular self-repair is an important mechanism which helps prevent cancer. Experimental evidence confirms that long, thin, carbon-based nanotubes can cause lesions to develop in mice, giving rise to fears that nanotubes can cause mesothelioma. Other experiments show that a type of nanoparticle called a “buckyball” can clog the gills of fish and damage their brains, and that some nanoparticles, when present in groundwater, can stunt plant root growth. While mounting evidence indicates that nanoparticles may pose a threat to human, plant, and animal health, scientists have not, until now, understood why. A group of research scientists now claim that they have created a computer model which mimics how a type of nanoparticle called the “buckyball” invades cells and causes damage. Buckyballs are nanoparticles which are officially named Buckminsterfullerenes, a name given to them due to their likeness to a geodesic dome invented by American architect and inventor R. Buckminster Fuller. The leader of the research group, Professor Peter Tieleman, says, “Buckyballs are extremely insoluble, in any solvent, so they tend to stick together into clumps of a few hundred, which is too large to move through a cell membrane without damaging it.” Tieleman performed the work with Luca Monticelli, a post-doctoral fellow. Both work at the University of Calgary. The size of the buckyballs led scientists to conclude that they damage brain cells in fish by ripping holes in cell walls and literally forcing their way through. Due to the immense difficulty of working with the tiny buckyballs, the Calgary researchers created a computer program simulation that mimicked the way in which buckyballs move through cell walls. To create a simulation that was accurate and detailed required an incredible 1,000 processors on the West Grid, Canada’s fastest grid-supercomputer, working over several months. (Source: Asbestos and Mesothelioma News)