Table 6.
Epigenetic effects of some NMs and their current applications
| NMs | Common applications | Epigenetic effect | NM properties | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Form | Size (nm) | Charge | ||||
| Silver | Antimicrobial agent to prevent wound infection and formation of dental plaque biofilms | Reduced histone methylation (H3K4me3 and H3K79me1) | Spherical | 25–30 | Negative | Qian et al. (2015) |
| Ultrasensitive recognition of biomarkers | Modified DNA methylation | ND | 3–20 | − 28 mV | Mytych et al. (2017) | |
|
Food covering for longer shelf life Anti-caking matter in powder goods like salt |
mi-RNA expression changes | ND | < 100 | ND | Eom et al. (2014) | |
| Bactericidal textiles like socks and towels | Modified HDAC activity | Spherical | 10, 25–30, and 80 | ND | Braydich-Stolle et al. (2010) | |
| Gold | Transfer carriers in biomedicine | The changes of expression on mi-RNA | Spherical | 40, 100 | ND | Balansky et al. (2013) |
| Contrast factors in imaging techniques | Condensation and reconstitution of chromatin and expression changes of mi-RNA | ND | 20 | ND | Ng et al. (2011) | |
| Quantum dots | Imaging based on Fluorescence | Deacetylation of Histone | ND | ND | ND | Choi et al. (2008) |
| Anticancer purpose applying photodynamic UV or photothermal therapy | Modifications of Histone | ND | 3.4 | Negative | Conroy et al. (2008) | |
| Silica | Lighter, more durable, and powerful than concrete, steel, stick, and crystal | Global genomic hypomethylation and reduced methyltransferase machinery | ND | 15 | ND | Gong et al. (2010) |
| Nanosensors could be used to detect conversions caused via external agents | Hypermethylation and inactivity of poly ADP-ribose polymerase 1 (PARP-1) promoter | ND | 15 | ND | Gong et al. (2012) | |
| Titanium dioxide | Sunscreen and cosmetics lotions | PARP-1 promoter hypermethylation | Spherical | 22 | − 29.8 mV | Choi et al. (2008) |
| Bleaching agents applied in soaps, several kinds of toothpaste, and wet wipes | Changed the methylation machinery expression levels and long interspersed nuclear elements 1 (LINE1) and ALU* expression levels | Spherical | 21.0 | Negative | Lu et al. (2016) | |
| Remediation (elimination of organic contaminants of soil and water) | Dysfunction of methylation cycle | ND | 10–100 | ND | Tucci et al. (2013) | |
| Copper oxide | Doping substances in semiconductors | Global DNA and transposable elements methylation changes | Spherical | 58.7 | Negative | Lu (2016) |
| Chemical sensors | Hypermethylation of Alu | Spherical | 58.7 | Negative | Lu et al. (2016) | |
ND not defined, HDAC histone deacetylase, *ALU, Arthrobacter luteus.