Usage of nanotechnology in Bio engineering
Nanotechnology can be considered as an emerging technology which is expected to revolutionize the disease diagnosis and treatment procedures. Nanotechnology enables the humans to investigate and manipulate material beyond the molecular level. Research and development in different areas of nanotechnology desires to develop highly functional biosensors, molecular switches, Nano sized microchips, tissue, muscles, bones and various organs of the human body. Nanotechnology plays a significant role in the recent technological advances in the areas of disease diagnosis. Furthermore, it is utilized in drug design and drug delivery.
Nanotechnology can be used in bio engineering to regenerate or replace damaged organs, cells and tissues. These regenerated cells have the ability to establish or restore normal tissue functions. Nanotechnology can be considered as a powerful approach in tissue regeneration for reconstructing the nano scale features of the tissues that can direct differentiation, adhesion and migration in the cells. Stem cells can be considered as an important source for repairing of the damaged human tissues. Nanomaterials can be used for stem cell therapy, effective biomolecule delivery, in vivo cell tracking, scaffolds for tissue engineering because of their size and the functional advantages. Nanofabrication techniques enable the researchers to generate nanofibre scaffolds for the regenerative therapies.
The Nano technological applications are used in disease treatment, diagnosis, monitoring, and to the control of biological systems. In addition to that it can be used to develop new ways to prevent the development of the diseases. Nano sized contrast agents can be used to understand the biological processes at the molecular level. Rather than that, nonporous membranes can be used in bio filtration. They are tunable nanometer sized pores which are exceptionally thin. They have the ability to improve the efficiency and speed of bio filtration. Delivery of therapeutic agents to specific sites in the human body can be considered as a challenging task. Polymer nanoparticles can be used to encapsulate the therapeutic agents and deliver them to the target site in the body in an effective and efficient manner. Most of the therapeutic nanoparticles range from 10 to 100 nm, therefore, they can travel throughout the blood circulatory system and they can penetrate in target tissues through the blood capillaries. Nanosized reporter probes can be used to deliver and monitor drugs. They can provide an immediate feedback regarding the therapeutic efficiency and the effectiveness of the ingredient. Nanoparticles can be used for optical imaging. The most widely used nanoparticles in optical imaging are semiconductor nanocrystals, known as quantum dots. Lymph node imaging using quantum dots help the surgeons to locate the exact position of the target. Early detection of cancerous cells and tumors can be mentioned as another application of quantum dots. Furthermore, multifunctional nanoparticles can be used in therapy. These nanoparticles can be stimulated by using infrared light or radiofrequency pulses to release the drug. Nanoparticles can be used for hyperthermia treatments. Magnetic nanoparticles can be introduced in the human body via magnetic delivery systems or an injection to the affected region.
Recent enhancement of the nanotechnology has resulted in rapid progress in the regenerative medicine, especially in production of bio compatible nanoscaffolds and tissue engineering. Neural tissue engineering can be considered as the biggest challenge in regenerative medicine because the neurons have very complex structure. In addition to that the environment has a high tendency to inhibit the regeneration. Scaffolds of polymer nanofibres with stem cells have been shown that it has the ability to prevent the formation of scar tissue in spinal injuries. Electrospun nanofibers can be used for corneal reconstruction. Future biomaterials would be able to simultaneously improve the regeneration of the tissues while reducing the and immune responses which can occur. Furthermore, it should be able to inhibit the infections. Tissue engineering has experienced an outstanding improvement because of the recent emergence of nanotechnology.
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