ICON EHS Database Category Explanations

Dermal/Mucous Membrane: material that is absorbed into the body through the skin or mucous system

Inhalation: material that is taken into the body by inhaling

Injection: material that is put into the body using a needle and syringe to pierce the skin

Multiple: material that is taken into the body by two or more of the subcategories within the "Exposure Pathway" category

Oral/Ingestion: material that is taken into the body through the mouth for digestion

Other/Unspecified: material exposure path that is not included in subcategories within the "Exposure Pathway" category or that simply is not specified

Computational and System Modeling: studies that use computer simulations or models to predict hazard effects or physical properties

Environmental Study: studies involving environmental remediation techniques or analysis of the environment - can include theoretical modeling

Ex vivo: studies where either 1) the experiment is performed in vivo and then analyzed in vitro, or 2) part of the subject is removed, the experiment is performed, and the part is returned to the host

In vitro: studies done on tissues or cells outside the living body and in an artificial environment

In vivo: studies done on tissues or cells in the living body of a plant or animal

Material Analysis and Applications: studies that characterize a material to understand its chemical composition and physical properties or that determine how a material is applied in a product formulation

Multiple: studies involving two or more of the subcategories within the "Method of Study" category

Other: studies involving method types not included in the subcategories within the "Method of Study" category

Synthesis: studies that define methods for producing a material

Aquatic Ecosystem: studies where impacts to the aquatic environment are evaluated

Atmospheric Ecosystem: studies where impacts to the air quality are evaluated

Mammalian: studies where mammals are the species targeted

Multiple: studies involving two or more of the subcategories within the "Exposure or Hazard Target" category

Other/Unspecified: studies involving hazard or exposure targets not included in the subcategories within the "Exposure or Hazard Target" given above, or simply not specified

Soil Ecosystem: studies where impacts to the soil quality are evaluated

Consumer: studies that focus the main exposure risk to the end-of-use consumer where a nanomaterial has been incorporated into a product available on the market

Ecosystem: studies that focus the main exposure risk to a broad range of environmental media, including air and water quality

General Population: studies that focus the main exposure risk to a group of people that are considered to be members of the public at large

Industrial or Research Worker:  studies that focus the main exposure risks to a group of people within an industrial, commercial or laboratory setting

Other/Unspecified: studies involving exposure to groups or media other than the subcategories within the "Risk Exposure Group" category given above or simply not specified

Non-peer Reviewed Journal Article: articles that are published in scientific journals but have not been reviewed by experts in the field of study

Other: articles that are not described by any of the subcategories within the "Publication Type" category given above

Peer Reviewed Journal Article: articles that are published in scientific journals and that have been reviewed by experts in that particular field of study and meet the current standards of that field

Public Source: articles that have open and free access typically published in non-scientific journals, newspapers, or websites

Review Article: an article or piece of writing that discusses the author's opinion on an already published work

General Public: articles that are written in more common every-day language for the layman and that tend to explain and clarify scientific principles

Other: articles that are not described by any of the other subcategories within the "Target Audience" category given above

Public Policy: articles that are written for the purpose of steering public policy

Technical Research: articles that are focused at scientific audiences and generally advance scientific knowledge in the field

Applications: articles covering studies conducted to demonstrate the usefulness of the material

Commentaries: articles covering studies that explain or summarize prior work

Environmental Fate and Transport: articles covering studies that help define a material's mobility within the environment

Exposure: articles covering studies that help define the likelihood of a test subject coming into contact with the material

Hazard: articles covering studies that help define to what extent a material is toxic or poses a hazard

Policy Reports: articles describing "nano" policy positions of either governmental or non-governmental organizations

Both: a material produced intentionally and unintentionally

Engineered: a manmade material produced intentionally

Incidental: a material produced naturally or as an unintentional byproduct of an engineered material or process

Carbon: a nanomaterial consisting of mostly carbon (e.g. carbon nanotubes, buckyballs, fullerenes and carbon black)

Metal: a nanomaterial made from the transition metals on the periodic table (e.g. gold and silver nanoparticles)

Multiple: a nanomaterial consisting of two or more of the subcategories within the "Particle Type" category

Organic/Polymer: a nanomaterial composed of carbon and hydrogen that may also contain any number of other elements such as oxygen, nitrogen, sulfur in single molecule or in long chain form (e.g. polymers, protein, and DNA)

Other/Unspecified: a nanomaterial not included in the subcategories within the "Particle Type" category given above or simply not specified

Oxide: any nanomaterial consisting of oxygen along with any other chemical elements (e.g. Fe3O4 "iron oxide and SiO2 "silica)

Semiconductor: a nanomaterial that contains specialized conducting properties, generally for electronic applications (e.g. Q-dots, CdSe, PbS)