Palladium nanoparticles exposure: Evaluation of permeation through damaged and intact human skin

The intensified use of palladium nanoparticles (PdNPs) in many chemical reactions, jewellery, electronic devices, in car catalytic converters and in biomedical applications lead to a significant increase in palladium exposure. Pd can cause allergic contact dermatitis when in contact with the skin. However, there is still a lack of toxicological data related to nano-structured palladium and information on human cutaneous absorption. In fact, PdNPs, can be absorbed through the skin in higher amounts than bulk Pd because NPs can release more ions. In our study, we evaluated the absorption of PdNPs, with a size of 10.7 ± 2.8 nm, using intact and damaged human skin in Franz cells. 0.60 mg cm−2 of PdNPs were applied on skin surface for 24 h. Pd concentrations in the receiving solutions at the end of experiments were 0.098 ± 0.067 μg cm−2 and 1.06 ± 0.44 μg cm−2 in intact skin and damaged skin, respectively. Pd flux permeation after 24 h was 0.005 ± 0.003 μg cm−2 h−1 and 0.057 ± 0.030 μg cm−2 h−1 and lag time 4.8 ± 1.7 and 4.2 ± 3.6 h, for intact and damaged skin respectively. This study indicates that Pd can penetrate human skin. •Palladium nanoparticles exposure is increasing due their use in catalytic converters, jewellery, electronic devices and biomedical applications.•Palladium is a sensitizing agent and can cause allergic contact dermatitis.•Our study demonstrated that palladium can penetrate and permeate the skin after the skin contact with palladium nanoparticles. Pd can penetrate and permeate the human skin after exposure to palladium nanoparticles causing potential sensitization.