Mesocosm network for Environmental Nanotechnology Risk Assessment – MESONNET

The potential diversity of nanomaterials is staggering, with countless variations in size, shape, surface chemistry, chemical composition, coatings and composites. Our project responds to the challenge of relating a vast array of nanomaterial properties to their potential environmental exposure, biological effects, and ecological consequences. Rather than approach this daunting task on an exhaustive case-by-case basis, our vision is to elucidate the general principles that determine nanoparticle behavior and translate this knowledge into the language of risk assessment to provide guidance in addressing existing and future concerns surrounding the environmental implications of nanomaterials.
Our current knowledge of the fundamental interactions of nanomaterials with living systems and their potential effects on ecosystem function is in the formative stage at best. Some headway has been made in exploring the potential impacts of nanomaterials on human health. However, investigation of the roles of nano-scale objects as agents of evolutionary change, environmental perturbation, and their effect on ecosystem structure and function have lagged behind advances in fabricating, measuring and manipulating materials at the nano-scale. To remedy this situation, nanoscientists must be engaged with environmental scientists. But, leaders in environmental biology, biogeochemistry, ecotoxicology, and ecology must also look for ways to apply nanoscience to their own fields while interacting with government and industrial scientists to create rigorous methods and protocols that have scientific legitimacy across disciplines. Our project provides the mechanism for accomplishing these vital tasks through an extensive, tightly networked array of scientists and labs representing a wide range of disciplines that are connected to society at large.Our overarching objective is to elucidate the role of nano-scale phases in ecosystems, their interactions with organisms, and the mechanisms by which they exert their influence
To accomplish the objectives, we will draw on a core of internationally recognized leadership (US and CEINT Consortium and French with the GDR-I I-CEINT consortium) in five areas of expertise: 1) nanomaterial chemistry and fabrication, 2) Exposure i.e Transformation, reactivity in the water column, 3) Exposure i.e: Transfert in porous media (soil, sediments and biofilms), 4) Fate and Impacts of NP in terrestrial and auqatic micro and mesocosms, 5) Modelling and Risk Assessment. Each of these areas of expertise is vital to a comprehensive investigation of the environmental impacts of nanomaterials.
Our research project consists of tightly integrated, cross-disciplinary collaborative projects that bring together highly successful research programs that have defined the very issue of environmental impacts of nanomaterials and represent the most advanced ecological impact and risk assessment capabilities. The central research tool is based on micro and pocket size adjustable mesocosms which will be managed by three Ecology laboratories and a Phyto Technical Platform (Rio and Ibisa labelled). The choosen nanoparticles CNT, CeO2, TiO2 and Ag° represent the most used in very common materials (composites, fuel, cements, glasses, health care products....). Their important release in the environment is conditionned by their large utilisation. For example nano TiO2 will represent 95% of TiO2 in 2025, Ag° is a component of ~500 commercial products. Their potential toxicity for ecosystems is associated to hydration, aggregation, dispersion, dissolution, redox phenomena... and they represent the very actual processes which could affect the ecosystems. The other teams are specialized in synthesis of NP and characterization, studies of the transformation in aquatic and bitic media, transport and transfert in porous media and modelling and to finish in modelling of the risqk assessment.