Federal Budget Good News For Nano?

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by Gwyneth K. Shaw | Jan 11, 2012 1:40 pm

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Posted to: Environment, Nanotech, Science/ Medical

(NHI Nanoblog) Before Congress went home for the holidays, it passed a spending bill with some important nanotechnology developments tucked inside.

The bill includes $60 million for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s National Center for Toxicology Research, according to Alex Philippidis of Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News. While that’s no increase, it is more than Republicans had wanted to spend on the center. The NCTR is a crucial part of the FDA’s effort to get a handle on the potential health and safety impacts of the increasing use of nanotechnology in medicines and other products that fall under the agency’s purview.

By leveraging the often-amazing properties of ultra-tiny materials, nanotechnology can make airplane wings stronger and help cancer treatments ruthlessly target the bad cells. As nano-enabled products proliferate, however, there’s a big gap between what’s possible and what’s been tested for safety. Growing evidence suggests that shrinking these materials can sometimes change the way they interact with the world around them, raising serious questions about their impact on health and the environment.

The FDA is an important player in answering those questions, since it oversees a wide array of products that are part of the nano boom. Medicines and medical devices are a big frontier, and sunscreens and cosmetics containing nanoparticles are proliferating on store shelves. But like other federal agencies, especially the Environmental Protection Agency, the FDA has struggled to turn widespread testing into hard recommendations to consumers or even regulations.

Late last month, a group of consumer advocates and environmental groups sued the FDA for failing to respond to a 2006 petition calling on the agency to do more on nano-enabled products.

A flat budget might not solve the resource issues at the agency, but avoiding a cut can’t hurt.

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