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Publications

Journal Article Epublish 2 citations

PubMed: 39877837 DOI: 10.3762/bjnano.16.7

Instance maps as an organising concept for complex experimental workflows as demonstrated for (nano)material safety research.

Beilstein J Nanotechnol 16:57-77

Authors: Benjamin Punz, Maja Brajnik, Joh Dokler, Jaleesia D Amos, Litty Johnson, Katie Reilly, Anastasios G Papadiamantis, Amaia Green Etxabe, Lee Walker, Diego S T Martinez, Steffi Friedrichs, Klaus M Weltring, Nazende Günday-Türeli, Claus Svendsen, Christine Ogilvie Hendren, Mark R Wiesner, Martin Himly, Iseult Lynch, Thomas E Exner

Affiliations

  • Department of Biosciences & Medical Biology, Paris Lodron University of Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, 5020 Salzburg, Austria.
  • Seven Past Nine d.o.o. Hribljane 10, 1380 Cerknica, Slovenia.
  • Center for the Environmental Implications of Nano Technology (CEINT), Civil & Environmental Engineering, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina, 2770y8, USA.
  • School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, B15 2TT Birmingham, United Kingdom.
  • UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Pollution, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, United Kingdom.
  • Brazilian Nanotechnology National Laboratory (LNNano), Brazilian Center for Research in Energy and Materials (CNPEM), Campinas, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
  • AcumenIST SRL, Etterbeek, Belgium.
  • Gesellschaft für Bioanalytik Münster, Mendelstraße 17, 48149 Münster, Germany.
  • MyBiotech GmbH, Industriestrasse 1B, 66802 Überherrn, Germany.
  • Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Appalachian State University, Boone, USA.
  • Seven Past Nine GmbH, Rebacker 68, 79650 Schopfheim, Germany.

Abstract

Nanosafety assessment, which seeks to evaluate the risks from exposure to nanoscale materials, spans materials synthesis and characterisation, exposure science, toxicology, and computational approaches, resulting in complex experimental workflows and diverse data types. Managing the data flows, with a focus on provenance (who generated the data and for what purpose) and quality (how was the data generated, using which protocol with which controls), as part of good research output management, is necessary to maximise the reuse potential and value of the data. Instance maps have been developed and evolved to visualise experimental nanosafety workflows and to bridge the gap between the theoretical principles of FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Re-usable) data and the everyday practice of experimental researchers. Instance maps are most effective when applied at the study design stage to associate the workflow with the nanomaterials, environmental conditions, method descriptions, protocols, biological and computational models to be used, and the data flows arising from study execution. Application of the InstanceMaps tool (described herein) to research workflows of increasing complexity is presented to demonstrate its utility, starting from (i) documentation of a nanomaterial's synthesis, functionalisation, and characterisation, over (ii) assessment of a nanomaterial's transformations in complex media, (iii) description of the culturing of ecotoxicity model organisms and their use in standardised tests for nanomaterials ecotoxicity assessment, and (iv) visualisation of complex workflows in human immunotoxicity assessment using cell lines and primary cellular models, to (v) the use of the instance map approach for the coordination of materials and data flows in complex multipartner collaborative projects and for the demonstration of case studies. Finally, areas for future development of the instance map approach and the tool are highlighted.

MeSH

Cells, Safety, Workflow, Nanostructures, Research

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