Copper nanoparticles toxicity

Karlsson, H.L. et al. (2008) Copper oxide nanoparticles are highly toxic a comparison between metal oxide nanoparticles and carbon nanotubes. Chemical Research in Toxicology, 21 (9), 1726-1732. 

Differential toxicity of copper (II) oxide nanoparticles of similar hydrodynamic diameter on human differentiated intestinal Caco-2 cell monolayers is correlated in part to copper release and shape. Nanotoxicology 6(7) 789-803... 

Direct ingestion is one potential entry pathway for nanoparticles into the body. In one study designed to assess the role of size in the toxicity of copper, Chen et al. (126) orally administered copper to mice, as microparticles (17 p,m), as... 

Toxicity is a function of the inherent toxicity of the chemical (copper salts are more irritating than magnesium salts), the surface activity (nanoparticles are worse than conventionally sized particles), and mass-focus-persistence (smaller active crystals tend to have less persistence and less focus than larger particles. In the presence of some healing, small dispersed active nanocrystals may induce minimal injury in any one spot). The answer to this question depends on how the nanocrystals interact with lung epithelial cells and future results will more adequately define the response. 

Metalloimmunoassays for proteins based on stripping analysis of copper- and silver-enhanced " AuNPs as well as silver nanoparticle labels have also been reported. One problem with all dissolution-based strategies for electrochanical detection of nanoparticle or enhanced nanoparticle labels is that dissolution often involves anploying toxic or corrosive reagents, for example, hydrobromic acid/bromine mixture for AuNPs and nitric acid for silver nanoparticles and copper- or silver-enhanced AuNPs. In one study, electrooxidation and complexation with thiocyanate was used as an alternative to dissolve silver nanoparticles in place of nitric acid for anodic stripping detection of myoglobin. ... 

The hydrazinium nickel hydrazine carboxylate complex, (N2H5)Ni (N2H3C00)3-H20, is also used as precursor for the synthesis of metallic Ni in the sonochemical preparation of Ni-Mo-S/Al203, since volatile Ni precursors such as Ni(CO)4 are exceptionally toxic and dangerous to use [24]. Similarly, copper hydrazine carboxylate is used to prepare nanoparticles of copper by the sonication method [25]. The presence of a zwitterionic surfactant in the synthesis procedure causes the formation of elongated nanoparticles of aspect ratio 10, which is of significance for electrical applications. In the absence of the zwitterionic surfactant only spherical particles result [26]. 

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