You Can’t See them, but Canthey Be toxic

A nanoparticle is less than 100 nanometers — too small for the naked eye to see. Yet these minuscule particles exist and can be harmful to humans and animals alike. The properties of nanoparticles and the adverse health effects of exposure to them was the topic of the 2007 Sitlington Lecture in Toxicology.

Guest speaker Dr. David Warheit presented “Health Effects Related to Nanoparticle Exposures: How do we assess the hazards?” to more than 75 faculty, staff and students. He shared findings from his research comparing the toxicity potency of substances as you move down the scale from “fine,” largersized particles, to “ultrafine,” or nanoparticles, primarily focusing on effects in the lungs.

Warheit graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor’s in psychology and from Wayne State University School of Medicine with a doctorate in physiology. He works at the DuPont Haskell Laboratory in Delaware where he developed a pulmonary toxicology research laboratory.

Dr. Carey Pope, Sitlington Chair in Toxicology and head of physiological sciences, hosts the Sitlington Lecture each year.

DerinDa Lowe