An integrated approach to nanotechnology safety
An EU-funded project titled ENANOMAPPER has devised a more effective, integrated approach to EU research in nanotechnology. It also advanced an infrastructure for nanomaterials design and safety assessment for the European NanoSafety Cluster (NSC), and the international nanomaterials science community in general. This concept is based on common components and application programming interfaces to address data and models and related challenges of interoperability. This provided a formal means for different components to reliably exchange information with one another and to act upon it. The ontology included common terms used in nanosafety research in order to provide a clear explanation of nanostructures. An infrastructure for data management was also built to support a collaborative safety approach. In addition, a collection of descriptors, computational toxicology models and modelling tools were developed to enable the use and integration of nanosafety data from various sources. Information to support and guide users was also provided in the form of tutorials, webinars and publications. The data management and ontology platform can be used to capture data and knowledge along the full lifecycle of ENMs. This will support safety and environmental and standardisation aspects of ENMs, which are important for safety-by-design and risk assessment. The linked data approach enables real operational interoperability with external ontologies and databases, thereby supporting the information transfer activities of the NSC. To increase its impact on the scientific community, ENANOMAPPER conducted 47 interviews with scientists and managers across all main projects of the EU NSC, including researchers, regulators and industry. The results were used to prepare, design and develop plans aligned with the cluster’s needs. ENANOMAPPER project work will have a significant positive impact on the nanotechnology industry, regulators and citizens in the EU. It will also help to strengthen the position of European nanosafety and research-driven industrial nanotech-based innovation across the world.
Keywords
Nanotechnology, engineered nanomaterials, ENANOMAPPER, European NanoSafety Cluster, nanosafety
