Category Archives: Nano Medicine

An electric and elastic mechanism has an opportunity to revolutionize the world of cancer research.

Ankit Jain, a graduate student, and Muhammad Alam, an electrical and computer engineering professor, have discovered a way to detect cancer in its early stages and personalize medicine for each individual. This possibility comes from a more sensitive biosensor called Flexure-FET.

It has two parts, Jain said. The first word, Flexure, comes from the flexibility it has, like a diving board. The second, (FET), comes from the electrical part of it.

The new sensor is combined with two, less sensitive sensor techniques to make the super sensitive sensor. An idea to mix the two came from each sensors lack of cost efficiency.

The idea for it is, Can you do something that is highly sensitive, and at the same time will be inexpensive? Alam said. (We want to make it) like the glucose monitors sold at Walmart.

According to Jains research article, electrical biosensors identify particles based on their electrical charge. Nano cantilevers locate the diseased molecules under the skins surface by measuring the mass, stiffness and/or surface stress. With the Flexure-FET including both of these abilities, Alam said early cancer detection and personalized medicine will be available in the future.

The personalized medicine looks at the main composition of protein networks that you have and the DNA sequence, Alam said. (From knowing a persons body composition) one would be able to design medicine specifically tailored for one person.

Alam used a diving board metaphor to describe the flexibility of an early cancer detection technique in regards to each persons diseased molecules.

When people jump into a swimming pool, think about that as one class of sensors, he said. If a heavy person stands on the edge of a spring board, then it will bend more, if a lighter person stands on the edge, it will bend less. We can detect molecules like that.

Alam was surprised at how the two techniques came together better than he expected.

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Nano technology improves health field

Harvard University scientists on Wednesday said they had created Smileys, Chinese characters and card-game symbols at scales of billionths of a metre using strands of DNA.

The feat marks the next step in "DNA origami" in which the molecule that provides the genetic code for life is used as a building block at the nanoscale, with potential outlets in engineering and medicine.

DNA is like a twisted ladder with double "rungs" of chemicals which interlock.

By unzipping the ladder and cutting it lengthwise, researchers can create a stretch with a set of single rungs that can partner up with a matching strand.

This is the characteristic harnessed by a team led by Peng Yin of Harvard's Wyss Institute for Biologically Inpired Engineering.

Reporting in the British journal Nature, the team showed off short lengths of DNA, each 42 "rungs" long, that interlocked with complementary stretches of the molecule.

Like Lego tiles, the strands could be programmed to assemble themselves into specific shapes.

To demonstrate the method, the team made a molecular picture featuring 107 designs, from emoticons, Chinese characters, numbers and letters from the Latin alphabet.

The canvas is a rectangle measuring 64 nanometres by 103 nanometres, with 310 pixels.

Scientists have been interested in nanoscale shapes for more than 20 years, and have progressively moved from two dimensional to three dimensional successes.

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DNA strands create tiniest Smileys

New ISO Technical Report Guides Characterization of Nanomaterials in Toxicology U.S. Leadership Supports Development of Newly Released International Guidelines New York May 29, 2012

ISO TR 13014:2012 was prepared by ISO TC 229, Nanotechnologies, Working Group (WG) 3, Health, Safety and Environment, under the project leadership of Dr. Richard Pleus of the United States. This group is U.S.-led, operating under the leadership of Dr. Laurie Locascio of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Dr. Vladimir Murashov of the National Institutes of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) serves as the WG 3 chair for the U.S. Technical Advisory Group (TAG) to ISO TC 229, which is accredited and administered by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI).

By understanding the chemical and physical characteristics of nano-objects, we are working to decrease toxicity of materials and promote the development of safer alternatives, said Dr. Pleus. The work done in this document has a fundamental importance in toxicology, as it tells scientists the material being tested needs to be understood: What does it look like? What is it made of? How does it interact with the surrounding environment?

Nanotechnology, which refers to the manipulation and control of matter in the nanoscale (approximately 1 to 100 nm), is revolutionizing virtually all industry sectors, from information technology to medicine to clean energy production. The ANSI-administered U.S. TAG to ISO TC 229 is responsible for formulating all U.S. positions and proposals with regard to ISO standardization in the field of nanotechnology.

The U.S. has been an active participant and effective leader within ISO TC 229 since the formation of the committee in 2005, playing a key role in influencing the strategic and technical direction of the committees standardization initiatives, said Fran Schrotter, senior vice president and chief operating officer at ANSI.

Participation on the U.S. TAG to ISO TC 229 is open to all materially affected U.S. national interested parties. For more information, visit http://www.ansi.org/isotc229tag or contact the TAG administrator, Heather Benko (hbenko@ansi.org).

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New ISO Technical Report Guides Characterization of Nanomaterials in Toxicology

ILSAN, South Korea, May 23, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The 17thInternational Packaging Exhibition (KOREA PACK 2012) had an opening ceremony on 22nd at KINTEX, KOREA.

KOREA PACK (International Packaging Exhibition) is held with KOREA MAT (Materials Holding & Logistics exhibition), COPHEX (Cosmetic & Pharmaceutical Industry), KOREA PHARM (Pharmaceutical Ingredient Exhibition), KOREA CHEM (Chemical Plant Equipment & Processing),KOREA LAB (Laboratory & Analytical Equipment) and KOBEX (Bio & Environment Equipment) together.

650 companies from 23 countries as 2,000 booth-scale attend and over 2,000 packaging related buyersvisit this KOREA PACK 2012(International Packaging Exhibition). This trading special exhibition has been evolved from only packaging exhibition to packaging and logistics exhibition.

Packaging material and container, packaging equipment, packaging automation equipment, converting equipment, food processing equipment,packing inspection equipment, packaging design and services related companies, associations, groups, universities, magazine and others participate in KOREA PACK 2012.

People can see storage system & equipment,classification system & equipment, picking system, shipping system, Forklift/Truck/Special equipment car, Palette for shipping/container,distribution equipment components,distribution information system & software, andwarehouse facilities and system related products at KOREA MAT 2012 (Materials Holding & Logistics exhibition)

Pharmaceuticals producing equipment, cosmetic equipment,pharmaceuticals/cosmetic packaging machine,pharmaceuticals/cosmetic subsidiary materials, base material process facilities,production process and control technology,sterilization/clean room technology and related technology, Bio engineering,water industry/Environment management technology,analysis instrument and others are shown atCOPHEX 2012 (Cosmetic & Pharmaceutical Industry).

Also, there are base material ofmedicine and medical supplies/APIs, functional raw material, completedmedicine and medical supplies, Biomedicine and medical supplies, naturalextract,entrusting researching and others related companies, associations, groups and universities atKOREA PHARM (Pharmaceutical Ingredient Exhibition)

A heat exchanger,Evaporation Plants,a distiller,filter,a centrifuge,crusher machine, blending equipment, and others are displayed atKOREA CHEM (Chemical Plant Equipment & Processing).

In addition,pharmaceuticals / food, cosmetic/chemistry/biochemistry/polymer,biotechnology/medicine, and water industry/environment/medicine, related companies participate andNANO Tech,advanced materials,microscope,measuring equipment and others are displayedatKOREA LAB (Laboratory & Analytical Equipment).

Kyungyon exhibition, a host of KOREA PACK, expects that this exhibition will be a bridge for connected 7 industries and it will be a platform for the convergence & development of 7 industries by holding at once.

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'KOREA PACK 2012' for Packing process industry to be held at KINTEX

(ISNS) -- No longer the stuff of science fiction, nanoparticles are becoming more and more common. The extremely tiny objects can do just about everything, from filtering pollution to delivering medicine in the body. However, no one is sure of the effects if they get loose in the environment.

A team of scientists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst thinks there may be something to worry about.

They have not proven the particles are dangerous, but have shown that some nanoparticles can be absorbed into plants and mutate the plant's DNA, and that, they say, is worth a further look.

Nanoparticles are so small that they act as a bridge between the size of atoms and something of tangible substance. The thickness of a human hair is measured in millionths of a meter; nanoparticles, in billionths of a meter.

And now, they are everywhere. Manufacturers put them in clothing such as socks to kill bacteria. They are in a type of house paint that cleans itself in sunlight and in the coating on eyeglasses. Clear sunscreen lotion now on the market contains zinc or titanium nanoparticles. Cars will soon have paint that heals itself from scratches.

Nanoparticles have become so common it is assumed inevitably they will end up in the environment.

To see what would happen to plants exposed to nanoparticles, the researchers took particles of copper oxide and exposed three kinds of plants to them: radishes and two types of rye, the researchers reported in Environmental Science & Technology.

They chose nanoparticles of copper because they are widely used for coloring glass, in ceramics, as a polish and in the manufacturing of rayon. They also are used in the electronics industry to manufacture semiconductors, said Bryant Nelson of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

The research team also used particles of copper oxide larger than nano-size as a comparison as well as regular copper ions.

Copper oxide is an oxidizing agent, and some oxidizing agents from metals can cause cancer in humans, a reason for the concern.

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Nanoparticles may pose environmental threat

NEW YORK, May 16, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Reportlinker.com announces that a new market research report is available in its catalogue:

http://www.reportlinker.com/p0181059/Global-Nanobiotechnology-Industry.html#utm_source=prnewswire&utm_medium=pr&utm_campaign=Nanotechn

This report analyzes the worldwide markets for Nanobiotechnology in US$ Million by the following Technology Segments: Nanomaterials (Solid Inorganic Nanoparticles, Nanocomposites, Nanostructured Materials & Membranes, Nanotubes and Fullerenes, & Other Nanomaterials), and Nanodevices/Tools. The report provides separate comprehensive analytics for the US, Japan, Europe, and Rest of World. Annual forecasts are provided for each region for the period of 2009 through 2017. Also, a six-year historic analysis is provided for these markets. The report profiles 117 companies including many key and niche players worldwide such as Aduro BioTech, Arrowhead Research Corporation, Calando Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Agilent Technologies Inc., Asklepios BioPharmaceutical Inc., Biosante Phosphate Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Celgene Corporation, Elan Pharmaceuticals, Elitech Group, Flamel Technologies, Inc., Gilead Sciences Inc., Life Technologies Corporation, NanoBio Corporation, Nanogen, Inc., Nanophase Technologies Corporation, pSivida Ltd., Sigma Aldrich Company, Starpharma Holdings Ltd., Dendritic Nanotechnologies, Inc., SkyePharma Pharmaceuticals, Unidym, Inc., and Zyvex Instruments LLC. Market data and analytics are derived from primary and secondary research. Company profiles are primarily based upon search engine sources in the public domain.

I. INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY & PRODUCT DEFINITIONSStudy Reliability and Reporting Limitations I-1Disclaimers I-2Data Interpretation & Reporting Level I-3Quantitative Techniques & Analytics I-3Product Definitions and Scope of Study I-31. Nanomaterials I-4Solid Inorganic Nanoparticles I-4Nanocomposites I-4Nanostructured Materials and Membranes I-4Nanotubes and Fullerenes I-4Other Nanomaterials I-4Nanoshells I-4Nanohorns I-5Nanocapsules I-52. Nanodevices/Tools I-5II. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. INDUSTRY OVERVIEW II-1

A Curtain Raiser II-1

Nanobiotechnology - The Next Big Thing II-2

Nanotechnology & Biology Tie the Knot: "Two to Tango" II-4

Where Conventional Molecular Science Falls Short Nanobio

Steps In II-4

Excerpt from:
Global Nanobiotechnology Industry