Bio: Mr. Boodhia is a Doctorate student at North-West University, South Africa, and a Research Assistant at the Toxicology and Biochemistry Section of the National Institute for Occupational Health, South Africa. His areas of expertise include Particle Toxicology and Nanotoxicology. Mr.Boodhia investigates the interference of metal-based nanomaterials and advanced materials in various dyes and assays currently used in high-throughput screening assays for big-data generation. Together with Professor Mary Gulumian, Mr. Boodhia is also involved in leading the development of an OECD test guideline on label-free assessment of NM-induced lysosomal membrane permeabilization. Mr. Boodhia is a registered Professional Natural Scientist with the South African Council for Natural Scientific Professions and the Secretary of the Toxicology Society of South Africa.

Abstract: Many large European-funded projects use high-throughput screening (HTS) platforms to generate large datasets for predictive in silico modeling of nanomaterials (NM). However, these platforms typically rely on label-based assays with optical readouts, which are often affected by NM interference. This lack of interference assessment can lead to unreliable and erroneous results, undermining their value for predictive toxicology. Despite numerous publications highlighting NM interference, its assessment and reporting are almost always neglected. It is proposed that interference assessment become a standard component of all future HTS platforms and a mandatory part of journal submissions. Furthermore, increased consideration should be given to label-free technologies. These measures will minimize the generation of flawed data, which currently hinders the development of accurate in silico predictive toxicology models.

References:

1. Andraos C, Boodhia K and Botha TL (2024) Is “Small” Safe? Exploring the Good and Bad of Nanomaterials. Front. Young Minds. 12:1356375. doi: 10.3389/frym.2024.1356375

2. Andraos C, Yu IJ, Gulumian M. Interference: A Much-Neglected Aspect in High-Throughput Screening of Nanoparticles. Int J Toxicol. 2020 Sep/Oct;39(5):397-421. doi: 10.1177/1091581820938335. Epub 2020 Jul 16. PMID: 32672081.

3. Vetten MA, Tlotleng N, Tanner Rascher D, Skepu A, Keter FK, Boodhia K, Koekemoer LA, Andraos C, Tshikhudo R, Gulumian M. Label-free in vitro toxicity and uptake assessment of citrate stabilised gold nanoparticles in three cell lines. Part Fibre Toxicol. 2013 Oct 9;10:50. doi: 10.1186/1743-8977-10-50. PMID: 24103467; PMCID: PMC3853235.

Sanabria NM, Vetten M, Andraos C, Boodhia K, Gulumian M. Gold nanoparticle interference study during the isolation, quantification, purity and integrity analysis of RNA. PLoS One. 2014 Dec 3;9(12):e114123. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0114123. PMID: 25470814; PMCID: PMC4254911.