Ecotoxicity Assessment of Graphene Oxides Using Test Organisms from Three Hierarchical Trophic Levels to Evaluate Their Potential Environmental Risk
After more than a decade of studying the ecotoxicity of graphene oxide nanomaterials (nGOs), it has been concluded that there is limited information available regarding the environmental risk of graphene-based materials. Since existing ecotoxicological studies of nanomaterials have produced contradi...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2023-10-01
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| Series: | Nanomaterials |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/13/21/2858 |
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| author | Imre Németh Krisztina László Anna Bulátkó Emese Vaszita Mónika Molnár |
| author_facet | Imre Németh Krisztina László Anna Bulátkó Emese Vaszita Mónika Molnár |
| author_sort | Imre Németh |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | After more than a decade of studying the ecotoxicity of graphene oxide nanomaterials (nGOs), it has been concluded that there is limited information available regarding the environmental risk of graphene-based materials. Since existing ecotoxicological studies of nanomaterials have produced contradictory results, it is recommended that case-by-case studies should be conducted to evaluate their effects. This can be carried out by employing several methods, testing species from different trophic levels, and conducting community studies. Our goal was to evaluate the toxicity effects of two GOs (AF 96/97 and PM 995) derived from different graphite precursors on various test organisms from diverse trophic levels (bacteria, protozoa, a freshwater microbial community, plants, and invertebrate animals) in aquatic environments. We compared the effects of both nGO types and estimated the predicted no-effect environmental concentration (PNEC) values to determine their potential environmental risk. Our findings demonstrated the need for a complex ecotoxicity toolkit since the ecotoxicity results varied based on the test organism, the selected endpoints, and the test method used. Additionally, we found that toxicity effects were dependent on the concentration and characteristics of the specific nGO type used, as well as the exposure time. We estimated the PNEC values for GO AF 96/97 and GO PM 995 in the aquatic compartment to be 8 ng/L and 4 ng/L, respectively. Even after applying the worst-case scenario approach, the tested nGOs pose no environmental risk. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T11:24:23Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-7ac16585c7f14a53a0ded67cb07a5e42 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-4991 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T11:24:23Z |
| publishDate | 2023-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nanomaterials |
| spelling | doaj.art-7ac16585c7f14a53a0ded67cb07a5e422023-11-10T15:09:11ZengMDPI AGNanomaterials2079-49912023-10-011321285810.3390/nano13212858Ecotoxicity Assessment of Graphene Oxides Using Test Organisms from Three Hierarchical Trophic Levels to Evaluate Their Potential Environmental RiskImre Németh0Krisztina László1Anna Bulátkó2Emese Vaszita3Mónika Molnár4Department of Applied Biotechnology and Food Science, Faculty of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, H-1111 Budapest, HungaryDepartment of Physical Chemistry and Materials Science, Faculty of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, H-1111 Budapest, HungaryDepartment of Physical Chemistry and Materials Science, Faculty of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, H-1111 Budapest, HungaryDepartment of Applied Biotechnology and Food Science, Faculty of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, H-1111 Budapest, HungaryDepartment of Applied Biotechnology and Food Science, Faculty of Chemical Technology and Biotechnology, Budapest University of Technology and Economics, H-1111 Budapest, HungaryAfter more than a decade of studying the ecotoxicity of graphene oxide nanomaterials (nGOs), it has been concluded that there is limited information available regarding the environmental risk of graphene-based materials. Since existing ecotoxicological studies of nanomaterials have produced contradictory results, it is recommended that case-by-case studies should be conducted to evaluate their effects. This can be carried out by employing several methods, testing species from different trophic levels, and conducting community studies. Our goal was to evaluate the toxicity effects of two GOs (AF 96/97 and PM 995) derived from different graphite precursors on various test organisms from diverse trophic levels (bacteria, protozoa, a freshwater microbial community, plants, and invertebrate animals) in aquatic environments. We compared the effects of both nGO types and estimated the predicted no-effect environmental concentration (PNEC) values to determine their potential environmental risk. Our findings demonstrated the need for a complex ecotoxicity toolkit since the ecotoxicity results varied based on the test organism, the selected endpoints, and the test method used. Additionally, we found that toxicity effects were dependent on the concentration and characteristics of the specific nGO type used, as well as the exposure time. We estimated the PNEC values for GO AF 96/97 and GO PM 995 in the aquatic compartment to be 8 ng/L and 4 ng/L, respectively. Even after applying the worst-case scenario approach, the tested nGOs pose no environmental risk.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/13/21/2858ecotoxicityenvironmental risk assessmentgraphene oxidenanomaterialspredicted no-effect concentration |
| spellingShingle | Imre Németh Krisztina László Anna Bulátkó Emese Vaszita Mónika Molnár Ecotoxicity Assessment of Graphene Oxides Using Test Organisms from Three Hierarchical Trophic Levels to Evaluate Their Potential Environmental Risk Nanomaterials ecotoxicity environmental risk assessment graphene oxide nanomaterials predicted no-effect concentration |
| title | Ecotoxicity Assessment of Graphene Oxides Using Test Organisms from Three Hierarchical Trophic Levels to Evaluate Their Potential Environmental Risk |
| title_full | Ecotoxicity Assessment of Graphene Oxides Using Test Organisms from Three Hierarchical Trophic Levels to Evaluate Their Potential Environmental Risk |
| title_fullStr | Ecotoxicity Assessment of Graphene Oxides Using Test Organisms from Three Hierarchical Trophic Levels to Evaluate Their Potential Environmental Risk |
| title_full_unstemmed | Ecotoxicity Assessment of Graphene Oxides Using Test Organisms from Three Hierarchical Trophic Levels to Evaluate Their Potential Environmental Risk |
| title_short | Ecotoxicity Assessment of Graphene Oxides Using Test Organisms from Three Hierarchical Trophic Levels to Evaluate Their Potential Environmental Risk |
| title_sort | ecotoxicity assessment of graphene oxides using test organisms from three hierarchical trophic levels to evaluate their potential environmental risk |
| topic | ecotoxicity environmental risk assessment graphene oxide nanomaterials predicted no-effect concentration |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/13/21/2858 |
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