Named after the great American architect Buckminster Fuller, buckyballs are getting a lot of attention at Purdue University. Part of Purdue’s research is focused on the environmental impact of these ultrasmall particles.

Concerns have been expressed that release of any nanoparticles into the environment could harm the microorganisms plants, people and other animals depend on. Purdue researchers came up with two approaches to see if buckyballs change the way microorganisms do their jobs. One was to analyze the genetics of microorganisms to look for changes, the other was to measure the output of carbon dioxide and methane, which are released when microbes degrade organic matter.

A few thousand miles to the west of Purdue, researchers at the University of California at Davis are also hoping to start a research institute devoted to studying the potential environmental consequences of nanotechnology.

UC Davis is competing for a $25 million grant from the National Science Foundation to establish the research center. It already has made the first cut and is one of 10 applicants being considered.

Back at Purdue, in what researchers there say is the first published study to examine buckyball toxicity to microbes that break down organic substances in wastewater, scientists doused the microbes in a volume of nanoparticles equivalent to pouring 10 pounds of talcum powder on a person. The microbes were unaffected, Purdue investigators say.

On the other hand, buckyballs have very low solubility in water. Water solubility usually is directly related to the extent that cells can absorb a substance, called bioavailability, which is an important factor in a chemical’s toxicity.

But for now, buckyballs and nanoparticles can breathe a sigh of relief. –Lee Bruno