Inhalation Toxicity of Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes in Rats Exposed for 3 Months
Abstract
Carbon nanotubes (CNT) are of great commercial interest. Theoretically, during processing and handling of CNT and in abrasion processes on composites containing CNT, inhalable CNT particles might be set free. For hazard assessment, we performed a 90-day inhalation toxicity study with a multiwall CNT (MWCNT) material (Nanocyl NC 7000) according to Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development test guideline 413. Wistar rats were head-nose exposed for 6 h/day, 5 days/week, 13 weeks, total 65 exposures, to MWCNT concentrations of 0 (control), 0.1, 0.5, or 2.5 mg/m(3). Highly respirable dust aerosols were produced with a proprietary brush generator which neither damaged the tube structure nor increased reactive oxygen species on the surface. Inhalation exposure to MWCNT produced no systemic toxicity. However, increased lung weights, pronounced multifocal granulomatous inflammation, diffuse histiocytic and neutrophilic inflammation, and intra-alveolar lipoproteinosis were observed in lung and lung-associated lymph nodes at 0.5 and 2.5 mg/m(3). These effects were accompanied by slight blood neutrophilia at 2.5 mg/m(3). Incidence and severity of the effects were concentration related. At 0.1 mg/m(3), there was still minimal granulomatous inflammation in the lung and in lung-associated lymph nodes; a no observed effect concentration was therefore not established in this study. The test substance has low dust-forming potential, as demonstrated by dustiness measurements, but nonetheless strict industrial hygiene measures must be taken during handling and processing. Toxicity and dustiness data such as these can be used to compare different MWCNT materials and to select the material with the lowest risk potential for a given application.
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Carbon nanotubes were found not to be consistently toxic despite the fibre-pathogenicity paradigm's prediction.
“However, a specific class of nanoscale materials, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), was found not to be consistently toxic despite the fibre-pathogenicity paradigm’s prediction [17, 18].”
From Macrophages bend long fibres with flexural rigidity lower than 3 mN·nm2 to avoid frustrated phagocytosis (2026) · cites this paper as [18]
One reason for reduced CNT toxicity is that many CNT materials were tested in agglomerate state, and such granular agglomerates are not expected to show fibre-specific toxicity.
“One reason for reduced CNT toxicity was attributed to the fact that many CNT materials were toxicologically tested in agglomerate state as CNTs can already be synthesized as highly entangled agglomerates, can spontaneously re-agglomerate after dispersion, or, if thin and flexible, can self-tangle into granules. Such granular agglomerates are not expected to show fibre-specific toxicity.”
From Macrophages bend long fibres with flexural rigidity lower than 3 mN·nm2 to avoid frustrated phagocytosis (2026) · cites this paper as [18]
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- Authors
- Ma-Hock, L., Treumann, S., Strauss, V., Brill, S., Luizi, F., Mertler, M., Wiench, K., Gamer, A. O., van Ravenzwaay, B., & Landsiedel, R.
- Affiliations
- BASF (Germany) (DE)
- Nanocyl (Belgium) (BE)
- Venue
- Toxicological Sciences
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2009-07-07
- Volume
- 112
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 468-481
- ISSN
- 1096-0929 (ISSN-L)
- 1096-6080
- OpenAlex
- W2126207677
- Cited by
- 448
- References
- 36
- Citations by year
- 2026: 3 · 2025: 15 · 2024: 9 · 2023: 21 · 2022: 10 · 2021: 19 · 2020: 15 · 2019: 19 · 2018: 22 · 2017: 31 · 2016: 30 · 2015: 50 · 2014: 42 · 2013: 44 · 2012: 45
- FWCI
- 23.63
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- Toxicological Sciences (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Graphene and Nanomaterials Applications
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pulmonary and Respiratory Medicine › Occupational and environmental lung diseases
- Life Sciences › Immunology and Microbiology › Immunology › Immunotoxicology and immune responses
- Keywords
- multi-walled carbon nanotubes, inhalation toxicity, granulomatous inflammation, lung-associated lymph nodes, neutrophilia, respiratory inflammation, NOEC, occupational exposure, carbon nanotube composites, hazard assessment
- MeSH terms
- Aerosols, Animals, Larynx, Lung, Lymph Nodes, Microscopy, Electron, Scanning, Nasal Cavity, Trachea, Reactive Oxygen Species, Inhalation Exposure, Nanotubes, Carbon, Microscopy, Electron, Transmission, Rats
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