M-CINSE and NIST Study Nanoparticle Health Risks

The National Institute for Standards and Technology (NIST) has enlisted the Maryland Center for Nano Science and Engineering (M-CINSE) to research the effects of nanoparticles on living things.

Called the Center for Nanoparticle Risk, Impact and Assessment, the new program is funded with $1.5 million set aside in the 2006 commerce appropriations bill, and will be established within M-CINSE. It will develop biomicrosystems in which the influence of nanoparticles in living cells can be studied as an early indicator of their impact on health.

The new program will be carried out in conjunction with another M-CINSE/NIST program, the Center for Nanomanufacturing and Metrology.

Published December 6, 2005