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intengineering OP t1_iwqyg8t wrote

Reply to comment by evocon15 in I'm John Swierk, assistant professor of Chemistry at Binghamton University, State University of New York. My team and I are working to understand the molecular composition of tattoo inks to provide a broader understanding to artists and consumers. AMA! by intengineering

I don't but that has more to do with very few of my friends having tattoos when I was growing up and in my 20s. I have nothing against tattoos but they never felt like a priority for me. -JRS

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evocon15 t1_iwrtpq6 wrote

Right on! I think it's actually really interesting research, as someone who has considered tattoos (but also does not have any currently) it was interesting to me that for such an ancient tradition, there has been relatively little scientific exploration of them. I know there has been a little bit of research done on the immunogenic effects and how that might play into suppressing autoimmune disease, but from what I could see there doesn't currently seem to be any conclusive evidence one way or the other.

Do you spend any time thinking about the LD50 of any of the carcinogens you are studying (I know carcinogens aren't really toxins so it probably doesn't make sense to talk about them in terms of LD50, but I guess I'm wondering if it is known how much of them, if any, can be tolerated before a significant increase in risk of cancer; or maybe it's just on a continuum). Have you also looked at what happens spatially to these compounds over time? Do they get degraded or trafficked away from the tattoo site or do they just kind of sit there?

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Super cool research!

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