Molecular and immunological toxic effects of nanoparticles

Nanoparticles have emerged as a boon for the public health applications such as drug delivery, diagnostic, and imaging. Biodegradable and non-bio degradable nanoparticles have been used at a large scale level to increase the efficiency of the biomedical process at the cellular, animal and human level. Exponential use of nanoparticles reinforces the adverse immunological changes at the human health level. Physical and chemical properties of nanoparticles often lead to a variety of immunotoxic effects such as activation of stress-related genes, membrane disruption, and release of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Delivered nanoparticles in animal or human interact with various components of the immune system such as lymphocytes, macrophages, neutrophils etc. Nanoparticles delivered above the threshold level damages the cellular physiology by the generation of reactive oxygen and nitrogen species. This review article represents the potential of nanoparticles in the field of nanomedicine and provides the critical evidence which leads to develop immunotoxicity in living cells and organisms by altering immunological responses. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.