Draft NIOSH Current Intelligence Bulletin: Health Effects of Occupational Exposure to Silver Nanomaterials

Required Elements for Initial Public Posting

Title: Draft NIOSH Current Intelligence Bulletin: Health Effects of Occupational Exposure to Silver Nanomaterials

Subject: Occupational exposure to silver and silver nanomaterials.

Purpose: NIOSH has developed a draft technical report that provides a critical review of available scientific literature and data relating to occupational exposures to silver and silver nanomaterials. The technical report provides recommendations for the safe handling of these materials including a recommended exposure limit (REL).

Timing of Review: January – April 2016

Primary Disciplines or Expertise Needed for Review: Industrial hygiene; toxicology; occupational health; risk assessment; epidemiology.

Type of Review: Individual

Number of Reviewers: 4

Reviewers Selected by: NIOSH

Public Nominations Requested for Reviewers: No

Opportunities for the Public to Comment: Yes

Peer Reviewers Provided with Public Comments Before Their Review: No

Peer Reviewers

1. Karin Aschberger, MS, MAS, PhD
   Scientific Officer, European Commission, Joint Research Centre
   Institute for Health and Consumer Protection, Systems Toxicology Unit
   Expertise: health risk assessment, nanomaterials, biochemistry, toxicology
2. Terry Gordon, MS, PhD
   Professor, Dept Environmental Medicine
   New York University School of Medicine
   Expertise: inhalation toxicology, nanotechnology
3. Thomas Peters, MS, PhD
   Professor, Occupational and Environmental Health
   University of Iowa College of Public Health
   Expertise: aerosol physics, engineered nanomaterials exposure assessment
4. Jay Zhao, MPH, PhD, DABT
   Senior Toxicologist, US EPA
   National Center for Environmental Assessment
   Expertise: toxicology, health risk assessment

Charge to Peer Reviewers

The overall goal of the peer review is to enhance the scientific quality by ensuring that the scientific and technical analyses support the NIOSH recommendations. The charge to the peer reviewers is to assess the scientific and technical validity of the information, and not matters of style or usage.

As part of the review of this draft document, reviewers are asked to address the following critical questions:

1. Does the document accurately identify and characterize the health hazards of exposures to silver and silver nanomaterials based on available scientific literature?
2. Does the risk assessment and dosimetry modeling represent a reasonable methodology for estimating worker risks from exposure to silver nanomaterials?
3. Is the relationship between exposure to silver nanomaterials and biological activity (toxicity) accurately portrayed in the draft document?
4. Are the recommended strategies for controlling exposure to silver and silver nanomaterials (e.g., engineering controls, work practices, personal protective equipment) reasonable?
5. Are the sampling and analytical methods for silver and silver nanomaterials adequate to measure worker exposure?