Slashdot Mirror
Nanotubes "As Deadly as Asbestos"
Stony Stevenson writes "Certain carbon nanotubes may be as hazardous to humans as asbestos.
A paper to be published in Nature Nanotechnology suggests that inhaling certain types of nanotubes can lead to the formation of mesothelioma, a type of lung cancer commonly caused by exposure to asbestos.
"This is a wakeup call for nanotechnology in general and carbon nanotubes in particular," said Andrew Maynard, co-author of the report and chief science adviser to the Project on Emerging Nanotechnologies." I'm really hoping that those medical face masks get popular again. That's a look that should really be cyclic, like bell-bottoms and thongs. Update: 05/21 19:18 GMT by T : See also this page at the Nanotechnology Project, which features a link to video commentary from Andrew Maynard, the researcher mentioned in the above-linked article.
Breathing solids into lungs which are supposed to process gases is a bad thing. More at 11.
The problem is that mice don't live very long, 3 years at most. Epidemiological studies over decades have shown the association of asbestos to both lung cancer and mesothelioma. So conceivably we may not know until decades later unless we get a proper mouse model for cancer production with carbon nanotubes (if it causes cancer...).
I am jaded enough to think there are lawyers happy to see studies like this. I know some people who worked with asbestos a long time did get legitimately ill, but it was sad to see how false and exaggerated claims of illness were used to make money and ruin businesses. The extent of ploy might be suggested in the tort reform that took place in Texas:
"Why Doctors Are Heading for Texas"
"In sum, these reforms have worked wonders. There are about 85,000 asbestos plaintiffs in Texas. Under the old system, each would be advancing in the courts. But in the four years since the creation of MDLs, only 300 plaintiffs' cases have been certified ready for trial. And in each case the plaintiff is almost certainly sick with mesothelioma or cancer.
No one else claiming "asbestosis" has yet filed a pulmonology report showing diminished lung capacity. This means that only one-third of 1% of all those people who have filed suit claiming they were sick with asbestosis have actually had a qualified and impartial doctor agree that they have an asbestos-caused illness."
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB121097874071799863.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
It's wise to be careful with nanotube technology of course - and also to be careful with studies that give the legal types excuses to plunder.
I don't know where Commander Taco lives (or Subcommander Taco, either), but I know that those face masks are quite common in many Asian countries for at least two purposes.
:-( I like Beijing other than the smog.
1. to protect others from your cold, etc.
2. to protect yourself from smog in large cities, such as Beijing.
I've been to Beijing, and those masks were quite necessary.
The problem is when said micro particle are supposed to be indestructible (an attribute shared by both asbestos and nanotubes). Another problem is shape. The system is designed to process round solids, not very long thin ones.
Cigarette filters aren't (and never were) made of fiberglass. And I doubt much, if any, of the filter gets inhaled. However, Wikipedia says that Kent used asbestos in their filters in the 50's
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cigarette_filter#Manufacture
Not exactly. A carcinogen like benzene works differently than a nanofiber like asbestos or carbon tubes. Benzene's affect is purely chemical. Asbestos (and nanotubes) cause damage through physical damage. One mechanism is when the fibers are longer than about 17 microns and are too long for white blood cells to envelop (frustrated phagocytosis). Because the fibers can work their way into lung tissue these fibers form a constant source of inflammation and scarring. Another is the fibers can spear individual cells and cause them to leak and physically interfere with chromosome function. It is worth being careful.
It is by the juice of the coffee bean that thoughts acquire speed, the teeth acquire stains. The stains become a warning
Sometimes I wonder if Slashdot poster are so generalized that they can't see the trees in the forest.
If it were as simple as you describe then every small molecule would cause cancer. In fact, the two mechanisms for the carcinogenicity are completely different for benzene and carbon. Benzene is similar enough to the nucleotides in our DNA that it frequently displaces and/or intercalates among the nucleotide pairs, causing mutations. Nanotubes in the lungs basically get stuck there because the body's natural defenses can't remove them (as true with any nanosized aerosols, like silica or asbestos). Anytime you have a continuous immune response, the inflammation eventually leads to cell damage and risk of cancer.
Mod up... Asbestosis is best described to the layman as "small needles" destroying the lungs.
One of the biggest reasons that asbestos has proved to be fertile ground for lawsuits is because the negative health effects have been know for about 100 years now, and corporations still used it in large quantities through the 1970s. That demonstrates a certain recklessness. "We're willing to risk your health for our profits."
I work in the asbestos business, and I can tell you that enforcement of asbestos regulations is REALLY lax. The main item that drives employers to follow OSHA regulations and protect their employees is fear of litigation. The main thing that drives manufacturers to keep asbestos out of their products is fear of litigation. You should be grateful to that fear of lawsuits, it is the only thing that prevents industry from continuing to put asbestos in thousands of building products.
-- QED
Face masks are less effective than tinfoil hats at filtering smog. They are useless for filtering CO, O3, NOx, PM10 particles, or diesel particles, which are the dangerous elements of smog. Facemasks are designed to keep really big dust particles like sawdust out of your lungs. They are also designed to keep spittle from falling into body during surgery. They are NOT gases or fine particles.
-- QED
Fiberglass does not cause mesothelioma. Currently the only know cause of mesothelioma is asbestos. Fiberglass fibers are thick enough that your lungs can eventually expel them, but they can damage your lungs in large volumes by clogging and cutting tissue. Fiberglass will not split into thinner fibers like asbestos does. The thickness of the fiberglass fibers also keeps them from getting deep into lungs.
Vermiculite was only contaminated from one source and for only a little while. The chances that your vermiculite is contaminated is slim. I use that stuff all the time for gardening. They sell it at home depot.
How about Byssinosis or lung disease caused by cotton fibers? We still use cotton textiles though.
My point is that any small particulate (look up silicosis) does not belong in the lungs. Nanotubes will most likely be encapsulated in some kind of epoxy matrix which would entail little or no hazard.
love is just extroverted narcissism
Looking at the NIH link on that page, it seems like it's not as bad as asbestos:
"Symptoms usually improve after stopping exposure to the dust. Continued exposure can lead to damaged lung function. In the U.S., worker's compensation may be available to people with byssinosis".