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Nanotechnology and Agvet Chemicals - common questions

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What is nanotechnology?

Nanotechnology is the emerging science of the very, very small.  It involves the deliberate engineering of materials at the atomic or molecular level to create new materials – called nanomaterials – that have unique and novel properties. 

The properties of nanomaterials provide opportunities for new products or applications in a wide range of industries, including medicine, energy, cosmetics, food, building, telecommunications, computing, agriculture and environmental management.

Why do we need nanotechnology?

Some of the new materials being created through nanotechnology could have a significant impact on the lives of people and on the environment.  Many of these impacts could be enormously beneficial and help address some of the most pressing problems facing the planet today. 

For example, nanomaterials could help our environment by removing dangerous toxins and pollutants from soil and water.  They could make our homes more energy efficient by helping to create special glass that either absorbs or blocks the sun’s heat.  Nanomaterials could even increase food security by substantially improving the way farmers fight plant and animal diseases.

How has nanotechnology developed?

Over the last few decades scientists have developed tools and instruments that have allowed them to manipulate materials at the level of individual molecules and atoms.  At this scale – called the nanoscale – the standard laws of physics don’t apply and some materials can behave very differently to the way they do at everyday sizes. 

For example, a material at the nanoscale may have a different shape or surface properties.  As a result it might have greater strength, be more elastic, more reactive or conduct electricity better.  The threshold below which the behaviour of a material can change in this way is between 30 and 100 nanometres. To give you an idea of how small a nanometre is, a human hair is about 10,000 to 100,000 nanometres thick.

One of the most important milestones in nanotechnology occurred in 1989 when Donald Eigler, a Nobel-prize winning researcher at IBM, used a high tech microscope to write the letters I-B-M using 35 individual Xenon atoms.  Since then, scientists have gone on to develop atomic-scale ‘switches’ and atomic-scale logic circuits that can perform simple calculations.

Despite these advances in our ability to precisely manipulate materials at the atomic level, not all nanomaterials are in fact new.  There are many instances where nanomaterials are formed naturally, such as in milk and during a lightning strike. It is not the existence of nanomaterials that is new, but rather the ability to engineer products at the nanoscale.

How is nanotechnology being used today?

While much of the potential of nanotechnology is yet to be realised, there are plenty of examples of nanomaterials in use today.  According to the CSIRO there are over 800 nanotechnology-based consumer products already available, including UV-blocking invisible sunscreen, anti-odour socks, and ultra-light tennis racquets.

One Australian company has recently released a product that uses nanomaterials to safely contain and neutralise dangerous chemical spills, such as industrial chemicals, poisons and petrochemicals.  A nanotechnology-enabled rechargeable battery has been created that can be recharged more than 9,000 times and last for more than 25 years.

Doctors are using 50 nanometre long ‘ships’ to help them treat cancer.  The ‘nanoships’, which contain cancer-fighting drugs and chemical markers, travel directly to the site of tumours and can be tracked using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines.  The precise location of tumour cells can be easily discovered, leading to earlier detection and better treatment.

These are just some examples. Each year, more and more nanotechnology-enabled products are finding a practical or commercial application.

What is the role of nanotechnology in agvet chemicals?

To date, nanotechnology has mostly involved industrial and therapeutic applications.  But the pressing need to provide sustainable food and renewable energy for the planet’s growing population – estimated at nine billion people by 2050 – has led to a range of new applications for nanotechnology in agriculture and agvet chemicals.  Here are just a few examples.

Less pesticides and fertilisers

Nanotechnology has the potential to dramatically improve the efficiency of agricultural chemicals such as pesticides and fertilisers, meaning farmers can use less and get the same result.  For example, nanoscale materials can be used to transport agricultural chemicals and protect them from deterioration in the environment.  These same materials can be designed to anchor to the roots of plants and deliver chemicals to the part of the plant where they are actually needed.  Slow release nanomechanisms could allow a measured uptake of chemicals, avoiding overdose and reducing the amount of chemical applied as well as runoff to the environment.

More effective veterinary medicines

Nanomaterials can also be used to make veterinary medicines more efficient.   Nanoscale delivery systems can also help a medicine pass unaffected through an animal’s gastrointestinal tract and release it at the desired location for optimal impact.  These highly targeted and highly effective delivery systems could dramatically reduce the amount of veterinary medicines used in animals, leading to healthier animals, fewer residues in food and potentially shorter withholding periods.

Nanomaterials can also potentially improve the safety of food products. For example, a nanomaterial has been developed that binds to and removes pathogenic bacteria commonly found in the intestines of poultry, thereby reducing the overall pathogenic load and reducing the chances of post-slaughter cross-contamination.

Smarter farming

Nanomaterials could also be used as field sensors to monitor environmental stress and crop conditions.  Networks of wireless nanosensors across a field could give farmers vital information to help them make decisions about planting, harvesting, watering, and pesticide and fertiliser use with a high level of precision, thereby minimising inputs and waste. For example, researchers have used nanotechnology to develop an ‘electronic nose’ to detect ethylene, a gaseous plant hormone that plays a key role in the ripening of many fruits.  This research may lead to improved product quality, reduced wastage and a reduced need for preservatives.

What are some of the risks?

As a relatively new field, nanotechnology also presents some risks. Not all of the potential impacts of nanotechnology are currently known.  Being extremely small, nanomaterials can readily be absorbed by living organisms.  Scientists already know that some nanomaterials, such as carbon nanotubes, can be harmful when used in certain ways.  Occupational health and safety laws have been put in place in Australia to restrict exposure to known hazardous nanomaterials. 

There is still much to learn about how certain nanomaterials interact with living things and the environment.  The assessment and management of these risks is a core focus of regulatory agencies across a range of industries, in Australia and right around the world.  It is the role of regulators – like the APVMA – to make sure that societies can reap the benefits of this new technology in a way that is safe for people and safe for the environment.

What is the APVMA doing about nanotechnology?

The APVMA has responsibility for ensuring pesticides or veterinary medicines that use, or are enabled by, nanomaterials are safe for people and safe for the environment, throughout the lifecycle of the product.  An independent review of our product assessment and registration system found it is capable of effectively and reliably addressing nanomaterials.  However because of the new and emerging nature of nanotechnology, we have put in place additional strategies to ensure we remain in step with both technological and regulatory developments in the field.  These strategies include:

  • Monitoring the development of nanotechnologies for pesticides and veterinary medicines and continually examining the need for changes to our assessment procedures, our risk management framework or changes to legislation
  • Providing APVMA staff with appropriate training in the science of nanomaterials
  • Working within a whole of government framework to ensure our policies and processes are coordinated across Australia
  • Continuing to be involved in national and international forums on the regulation of nanomaterials
  • Publishing information on nanotechnology and providing the community and industry with information on any changes to our regulatory processes

Is nanotechnology being used in agvet chemicals already?

There is currently only one agvet product containing nanomaterials – propofol, an intravenous anaesthetic for dogs and cats – registered for use in Australia.

As nanotechnology continues to develop, it is highly likely that it will increasingly become part of new product development in the agvet sector, just as it has for therapeutic goods and industrial chemicals.  The APVMA therefore expects to see further applications to register agvet products and chemicals containing nanomaterials.

How will agvet chemicals that use nanotechnology be assessed?

Agvet chemicals containing engineered nanomaterials will be subject to rigorous assessment and review.  Under the current registration system in Australia, the applicant for an agvet chemical or chemical product must submit data and scientific evidence demonstrating the efficacy and safety of that chemical or chemical product. 

Data supporting a chemical or chemical product that contains engineered nanomaterials will be independently evaluated, regardless of a conventional counterpart product being approved.  However, not all engineered or manufactured nanoscale materials are novel and will need to be assessed.  For example, many ordinary detergents contain nanoscale particles and have been used safely for decades.

Government agencies, state and territory primary industry or agriculture departments, environment protection authorities and other independent reviewers will provide expert guidance and advice to the APVMA on nanotechnology registration applications.

Can nanomaterials be added to agvet chemicals that are already registered?

Every agvet chemical or chemical product is considered separately by the APVMA under the existing regulatory framework.  Any change to the composition or form of a registered chemical or chemical product creates a new chemical or chemical product, which will require a new assessment.

Where can I find out more?

You can find out more about the Australian Government’s whole of government approach to nanotechnology by visiting http://www.innovation.gov.au/Industry/Nanotechnology.