Hazardous effects of nanomaterials on aquatic life

The emerging applications of nanotechnology in various sectors continuously increase the use of nanomaterials in industrial products like consumer and medical products. The ever-increasing use of nanomaterials also increases the chances of their release into the environment including water bodies. Therefore concerns about the environmental fate and effects of such nanomaterials have inspired studies to predict their concentrations in the environment and to determine their toxicological effects on aquatic biota. Nanomaterials can be added to water bodies or aquatic systems directly through discharge from industries or disposal of wastewater treatment effluents or indirectly through surface runoff from soils. Toxicological studies performed showed that nanomaterials have promising bactericidal and mutagenic effects due to the metal ion properties. Moreover, such adverse effects which were seen in the case of bacteria and other microbes were also observed in plants and fish. Although risk assessments for nanomaterial releases to the aquatic systems are still in their infancy, further extensive studies are required for the accurate measurements of nanomaterials concentration in aquatic systems and their toxicological effects.