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Several nanomachines and other nano-objects that are currently under investigation in medical research and diagnostics will soon find applications in the practice of medicine. Introduction of nanobiotechnologies in medicine will not create a separate branch of medicine, but simply implies improvement in diagnosis as well as therapy, and can be referred to as nanomedicine.
Current research is exploring the fabrication of designed nanostructures, nanomotors, microscopic energy sources, and nanocomputers at the molecular scale, along with the means to assemble them into larger systems, economically, and in large numbers.
Artificial nanostructures such as nanoparticles and nanowires, being of the same size as biological entities, can readily interact with biomolecules on both the cell surface and within the cell. Nanomedical developments range from nanoparticles for molecular diagnostics, imaging and therapy, to integrated medical nanosystems, which may perform complex repair actions at the cellular level inside the body.
This research activity is focused on those materials that, in response to an external stimulus (e.g., the application of an electric or magnetic field, irradiation of a suitable electromagnetic radiation, stimulation with ultrasounds, etc.) change one or more of their functional or structural properties. The objectives of this research are the improvement of standard nanoplatforms for drug delivery and cell surgery, and the exploration of innovative solutions, emerging by a multidisciplinary approach that involves the merging of engineering, biology, physics, and chemistry. |
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Nanofilms (or nanosheets) are polymer-based films with very large area (up to tens of cm2) and with a thickness in the order of few tens – hundreds of nanometers. The peculiar properties of these structures make them suitable for different applications; in particular ultra-thin films have been developed for electrochemical devices, as chemical, biological and nano-mechanical sensors, and as nano-scale chemical and biological reactors.
The layer-by-layer fabrication process of polymers enables the fabrication of films which can be modified, functionalized, cut and folded for building novel components of soft robots with micrometer size.
Biocompatibility, flexibility and possibility to carry drugs for controlled release are just some of the most interesting features that nanosheets can exploit. They have been recently presented in the biomedical field for closing incisions after open surgery or laparoscopic procedures, using them as nanopatches or adding them to traditional sutures on wet tissues.
For using nanosheets as plasters to be delivered, targeted and finely positioned in situ on surgical incisions, or to perform therapeutic or treatment tasks, nanosheets must be precisely manipulated. The possibility to include magnetic components into nanosheets, such as magnetic nanoparticles or nanobeads, represents a first step for the development of magnetic nanosheets with the potential of a remote controlled manipulation. |
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Approaching micro-world applications there is the need for a precise tailoring of the physico-chemical properties and functionalities of smart materials and often the demand for their adaptability to different work conditions and processing techniques. Smart polymers, with their almost infinite capability to be modified for the precise “tuning” of desired properties and with their generally easier and cheaper processing, seems to be well suited as candidates for the development of smart microstructured actuation systems. Respect to their inorganic counterpart (metals, alloys, ceramics, crystals) polymers indeed permit a wider freedom in setting and modifying synthetic procedures; they could be quite easily processed together with other organic/inorganic/biological compounds in order to develop functional blends, hybrid composites and nanocomposites; micro and nanopatterning of polymers, with resolutions down to 100 nm or lower, is nowadays available with relatively inexpensive techniques such as hot embossing and imprinting or also exploiting self-assembling procedures and supramolecular arrangement of organic molecules. In this way novel “soft” nanofabrication processes, very different from more common lithographic techniques, are exploited for the production of nanostructured organic materials such as nanostructured polymer gels and polymer brushes that open the way towards nanoactuation. In addition, post-modification of polymer surfaces, in order to include specific functionalities on existing surfaces to e.g. induce change in wettability properties or alter biomolecular functions, is quite easily achieved by chemical modifications. Moreover the deposition of thin layers of polymers is easily prepared with techniques as spin coating that are faster and cheaper than those required for deposition of thin layers of inorganic counterparts and that are very often performed under high-vacuum conditions. |
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