Ecotoxicity of manufactured ZnO nanoparticles – A review

This report presents an exhaustive literature review on the toxicity of manufactured ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) to ecological receptors across different taxa: bacteria, algae and plants, aquatic and terrestrial invertebrates and vertebrates. Ecotoxicity studies on ZnO NPs are most abundant in bacteria, and are relatively lacking in other species. These studies suggest relative high acute toxicity of ZnO NPs (in the low mg/l levels) to environmental species, although this toxicity is highly dependent on test species, physico-chemical properties of the material, and test methods. Particle dissolution to ionic zinc and particle-induced generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) represent the primary modes of action for ZnO NP toxicity across all species tested, and photo-induced toxicity associated with its photocatalytic property may be another important mechanism of toxicity under environmentally relevant UV radiation. Finally, current knowledge gaps within this area are briefly discussed and recommendations for future research are made.

► Ecotoxicity studies of ZnO nanoparticles (NPs) have been focused on bacteria.
► Studies on other species are lacking.
► Limited studies suggest ZnO NPs are toxic to both aquatic and terrestrial species.
► Solubilization to ionic zinc represents an important mechanism of ZnO NP toxicity.
►  Phototoxicity represents another important mode of action.