Nanomaterials Under Study by the E.P.A.
Sep 30 (New York Times) The Environmental Protection Agency detailed its plans on Tuesday for research into the possible health and environmental risks of nanomaterials, tiny substances that are finding growing use in products like sunscreens and industrial adhesives.

Everyday nanotechnology
Aug 17 (Boston Globe) Long the stuff of hype and occasional hysteria, nanotechnology is quietly merging into modern life, its minuscule particles infused in an array of products, ranging from stink-proof socks to life-saving cancer medications.

A Promising Niche for Nanotech
Jun 24 (PhysOrg.com) In a cluster of rather drab buildings overlooking the Charles River, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology are incubating a tiny technology that packs an enormous punch. By manipulating matter at less than a billionth of a meter, MIT scientists are using nanotechnology to create next-generation biomedical therapies that hold enormous promise and peril for Minnesota's medical device industry. Imagine a stent covered with microchips that can release drugs into arterial tissue at the push of a button. Or a tattoo that changes color as a warning before a patient suffers a heart attack. What about a diagnostic device that "sorts" cancer cells from healthy cells?

Health Risks Of Nanotechnology: How Nanoparticles Can Cause Lung Damage, And How The Damage Can Be Blocked
Jun 12 (Science Daily) Scientists have identified for the first time a mechanism by which nanoparticles cause lung damage and have demonstrated that it can be combated by blocking the process involved, taking a step toward addressing the growing concerns over the safety of nanotechnology. Nanotechnology, the science of the extremely tiny (one nanometre is one-billionth of a metre), is an important emerging industry with a projected annual market of around one trillion US dollars by 2015. It involves the control of atoms and molecules to create new materials with a variety of useful functions, including many that could be exceptionally beneficial in medicine. However, concerns are growing that it may have toxic effects, particularly damage to the lungs. Although nanoparticles have been linked to lung damage, it has not previously been clear how they cause it.

Local officials move toward monitoring nanotechnologies
Jul 29 (EurekAlert) State and local officials have taken steps to begin monitoring the manufacture and storage of nanomaterials, a major step for a cutting-edge technology that has yet to be regulated by the federal government.

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