Integrated QSAR and Adverse Outcome Pathway Analysis of Chemicals Released on 3D Printing Using Acrylonitrile Butadiene Styrene

Abstract

Additive manufacturing commonly known as 3D printing has numerous applications in several domains including material and biomedical technologies and has emerged as a tool of capabilities by providing fast, highly customized, and cost-effective solutions. However, the impact of the printing materials and chemicals present in the printing fumes has raised concerns about their adverse potential affecting humans and the environment. Thus, it is necessary to understand the properties of the chemicals emitted during additive manufacturing for developing safe and biocompatible fibers having controlled emission of fumes including its sustainable usage. Therefore, in this study, we have developed a computational predictive risk-assessment framework on the comprehensive list of chemicals released during 3D printing using the acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) filament. Our results showed that the chemicals present in the fumes of the ABS-based fiber used in additive manufacturing have the potential to lead to various toxicity end points such as inhalation toxicity, oral toxicity, carcinogenicity, hepatotoxicity, and teratogenicity. Moreover, because of their absorption, distribution in the body, metabolism, and excretion properties, most of the chemicals exhibited a high absorption level in the intestine and the potential to cross the blood-brain barrier. Furthermore, pathway analysis revealed that signaling like alpha-adrenergic receptor signaling, heterotrimeric G-protein signaling, and Alzheimer's disease-amyloid secretase pathway are significantly overrepresented given the identified target proteins of these chemicals. These findings signify the adversities associated with 3D printing fumes and the necessity for the development of biodegradable and considerably safer fibers for 3D printing technology.

Risk assessment and toxicity effects of materials used during additive manufacturing with FDM technology

“…Pandit i wsp. [31] wykazali, że stosowanie filamentów ABS w produkcji przyrostowej może prowadzić do toksyczności inhalacyjnej i po podaniu doustnym. Ujawniono, że większość substancji chemicznych emitowanych podczas druku 3D cechowała się wysokim poziomem wchłaniania w jelitach i potencjałem przenikania przez barierę krew-mózg.…”

How safe are 3D-printed skull models for neurosurgical simulation? Measurement of airborne particles and VOCs while burr hole drilling

“…Furthermore, there is increased awareness of potentially harmful airborne particles and VOCs emitted during the process of 3D printing (Floyd et al, 2017;Wojtyła et al, 2020), with ABS, in particular, shown to present potential health risks without suitable ventilation (Pandit et al, 2021, Farcas et al, 2019. Higher-end industrial 3D printers and processes also present airborne particle hazards if not adequately ventilated (Kangas et al, 2023).…”

“…, 2017; Wojtyła et al. , 2020), with ABS, in particular, shown to present potential health risks without suitable ventilation (Pandit et al. , 2021, Farcas et al.…”

Introduction to Special Issue: Computational Toxicology

“…Any comprehensive analysis requires a database of well-curated data. The ChEMBL database contains different bioactivity data types from early discovery to postclinical data on marketed drugs and was used in multiple prior toxicity studies, including at least four articles included here. ,,, In this issue, Hunter et al extended the ChEMBL safety-related information for approved drugs to include the assignment of toxicity based on their withdrawn status and/or black box warning information described on medicinal product labels. These data can become an additional important asset for future toxicity prediction studies.…”