Cellular defense mechanisms following nanomaterial exposure: A focus on oxidative stress and cytotoxicity

Abstract

In response to the significant increase in nanotechnology over the last three decades, and the plethora of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) now becoming available, understanding as to how nano-sized particles may impact upon human health has become a dominating area of research worldwide since the late 1990’s (Stone et al. in Environmental Health Perspectives, 2017) [1]. Whilst approaches constantly adapt to the increasing number and variety of ENMs produced for a plethora of different applications, the quantity of alternative physico-chemical characteristics, a key factor in the potential hazard of ENMs (Bouwmeester et al. in Nanotoxicology 5:1–11, 2011) [2], is further increasing in number and type.