Nanoparticle release from nano-silver antimicrobial food containers

• Published in: Food and chemical toxicology 2013-12, Vol.62, p.16-22
• Main Authors: Echegoyen, Yolanda, Nerín, Cristina
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Anti-Infective Agents - analysis; anti-infective properties; Antibacterial agents; Antibiotics. Antiinfectious agents. Antiparasitic agents; Antiinfectives and antibacterials; antioxidant activity; Biological and medical sciences; Chemical and industrial products toxicology. Toxic occupational diseases; Containers; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; Exact sciences and technology; Food Contamination; Food packaging; Food Packaging - instrumentation; Food Packaging - methods; Foods; ICP–MS; Materials science; Medical sciences; Metal Nanoparticles - analysis; Metals and various inorganic compounds; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Migration; Nanocomposites; Nanoparticles; Nanoscale materials and structures: fabrication and characterization; nanosilver; Nanostructure; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Physics; plastics; polymer nanocomposites; Potential toxicity; Silver; Silver - analysis; Silver nanoparticles; toxicity; Toxicology
• ISSN: 0278-6915; 1873-6351
• DOI: 10.1016/j.fct.2013.08.014

[Display omitted] •Three different commercialized food containers containing silver nanoparticles were studied.•Differentiation of migration as dissolved silver and as silver nanoparticles was carried out, a key aspect for the toxicity.•Migration of other nanomaterials was also confirmed.•Migration values are very low, although in the EU regulation there is not a specific limit for nanomaterials. Polymer nanocomposites incorporating metal or metal oxide nanoparticles have been developed to improve their characteristics (flexibility, gas barrier properties, antimicrobial or antioxidant properties, etc.). Among them silver nanoparticles are used because of their antimicrobial effect in many daily life materials, i.e. food packaging. However, there is not any reference to the migration of nanoparticles to the food. In this paper the results of migration studies (with different simulant solutions and times) in three commercial nanosilver plastic food containers are shown. Migration solutions were evaluated by ICP–MS and SEM–EDX analysis and silver in dissolved form and silver as nanoparticles were analyzed, a key aspect for the toxicity. Silver migration was observed for all samples studied, with the total silver migration values ranging between 1.66 and 31.46ng/cm2 (lower than the permissible limits). Size and morphology of the silver nanoparticles changed for the different samples (ranging between 10 and 60nm) and migration of other nanosized materials was also confirmed.