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Deadly Silver
Widespread use of nanoscale silver will challenge regulatory agencies to balance important potential benefits against the possibility of significant environmental risk, highlighting the need to identify research priorities concerning this emerging technology, according to a new report released today by the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies (PEN).Silver itself is classified as an environmental hazard by EPA because it is more toxic to aquatic plants and animals than any metal except mercury. Even if a nanoparticle itself is not especially toxic, silver nanoparticles increase the effectiveness of delivering toxic silver ions to locations where they can cause toxicity. Colloidal silver was traditionally used as an antibiotic, even though it clearly had no direct antiseptic properties. Only recently it was discovered to inhibit bacterial reproduction, an alternative means of suppressing infection. Posted by: Anonymoose 2008-12-24 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=258050 |