Cellular and molecular toxicology of nanoparticles

This chapter discusses the most frequently used experimental models, both in vitro and in vivo, for the characterization of toxicological profile nanoparticles. It focuses on the description of the mechanisms involved in nanotoxicology, as well as the new trends in nanotoxicology lab analysis. The exponential use of nanomaterials in a range of applications in the biomedical field has fostered the need for an in-depth characterization of their toxicological profile, including the risk of genotoxicity and immunotoxicity. Nanotoxicology is rising as a specific discipline, because the standard toxicological assays are often inadequate for the characterization of submicron-sized particles. The cytoskeleton is responsible for the spatial organization of the cell contents, intracellular transport, physical and biochemical connection to the external environment, movements and changes of the shape, such as those involved in endocytosis.The authors acknowledge the financial support received from Portuguese Science and Technology Foundation (FCT/MCT) and from European Funds (PRODER/COMPETE) under the project reference M-ERA-NET/0004/2015-PAIRED, co-financed by FEDER, under the Partnership Agreement PT2020.