Category Archives: Nanomedicine

Nanomedicine is the medical application of nanotechnology that will hopefully lead to useful research tools, advanced drug delivery systems, and new ways to treat disease or repair damaged tissues and cells. Drug delivery is currently the most advanced application of nanotechnology in medicine. Nanoscale particles are being developed to improve drug bioavailability, a major limitation in the design of new drugs. Poor bioavailability is especially problematic with newer and still experimental RNA interference therapy. Lipid or polymer-based nanoparticles are taken up by cells due to their small size, rather than being cleared from the body. These nanoparticles can be used to shuttle drugs into cells which may not have accepted the drug on its own. The nanoparticle chaperone may also be able to specifically target certain cell types, possibly reducing toxicity and improving efficacy. Nanoparticles such as quantum dot nanocrystals are the size of a protein molecule or short stretch of DNA. Quantum dots can be engineered to absorb and emit many wavelengths of light with very sharp precision. This makes them ideal for protein-protein interaction studies as they can be linked to molecules to form long-lived probes. They can track biological events by tagging specific proteins or DNA in order to follow their progress through biological pathways. In medicine, quantum dots could be used for diagnostic purposes. Dendrimers are another interesting and powerful use of nanotechnology in medicine. Dendrimers are nanostructured synthetic molecules with a regular branching structure projecting from a central core. Dendrimers form one layer at a time so the size of the dendrimer is determined by the number of synthetic steps. Each dendrimer is usually only a few nanometers wide. The outside layer can be engineered to be composed of specific functional groups that can act as hooks to specifically bind other molecules such as DNA. Dendrimers may act as effective agents for delivering DNA into cells during gene therapy. While viral vectors typically trigger an immune response, in principle, dendrimers should not. Nanorobotics or molecular nanotechnology involves the creation of complex mechanical systems constructed from the molecular level. Richard Feynman was the first to propose using machine tools to make smaller machine tools which can make smaller machine tools down to the atomic level. DNA makes an ideal material for the construction of nanomachines due to its stiffness. The intermolecular interactions of DNA are well-known and can be easily predicted. The self-assembly of DNA further facilitates its use as a construction material. Dr. Nadrian Seeman pioneered the use of DNA as a construction material and can make virtually any regular 3D shape. In 1999 his group succeeded in building the first nanoscale robotic actuator from DNA. DNA and later, nanotubes, have been used to construct molecular tweezers which can be used to physically manipulate nanostructures. Research into the construction of nanomotors has advanced greatly and nanomotors will form an important part of future nanorobots. Carlo Montemagno at Cornell has mutated the central rotating shaft of ATPase to have metal-binding amino acids that allow the ATPase to bind to nanoscale nickel pedestals. A silicon bar 100 nanometers long was bound to the rotor subunit of each ATPase by self-assembly, creating an ATP-powered molecular motor. These nanorobots may eventually form sophisticated cellular factories, used to synthesize drugs, repair damaged DNA, and releasing drugs on command.

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Nanomedicine Research

4 hours ago by Bill Kisliuk

(Phys.org) When it comes to nanomedicine, smaller issurprisinglynot always better.

UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science researchers have determined that the diminutive size of nanowire-based biosensorswhich healthcare workers use to detect proteins that mark the onset of heart failure, cancer and other health risksis not what makes them more sensitive than other diagnostic devices. Rather, what matters most is the interplay between the charged ions in the biological sample being tested and the charged proteins captured on the sensors' surface.

The finding counters years of conventional wisdom that a biosensor can be made more sensitive simply by reducing the diameter of the nanowires that make up the device. This assumption has driven hundreds of costly research-and-development efforts in the field of nanomedicinein which tiny materials and devices are used to detect, diagnose and treat disease.

The research suggests new directions for designing biosensors to improve their sensitivity and make them more practical for doctorsand, eventually, patients themselvesto use.

"This is the first time the understanding of why nanowire biosensing works has been challenged," said Chi On Chui, an associate professor of electrical engineering and bioengineering at UCLA whose lab performed the research. "The advantage is not from the fact that the wires are nanoscale, but rather how their geometry reduces the ability of the ions to inhibit protein detection. This research could be a step toward developing sophisticated, cost-efficient and portable devices to accurately detect a range of illnesses."

The research was published March 25 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Nanowire biosensors are, in essence, electronic transistors with a diameter smaller than the width of a single red blood cell. When they are exposed to a sample of blood or another bodily fluid, the specific charged proteins being tested for are captured on the nanowires' surfaces. The charge of the captured proteins changes the rate of electric current flowing through the nanowire transistor. By monitoring the electrical current, researchers can quantify the concentration of proteins in the sample, which can give them an indication of heart health, diabetes and a number of other medical conditions.

A challenge to the practical use of the technology is that in addition to the charged proteins, many physiological fluids contain a large concentration of charged ions, such as sodium, potassium and chloride. These ions surround the proteins and mask the protein charge, which prevents the sensor from detecting the proteins.

Researchers in labs can circumvent this problem. But doctors performing tests on their patients or patients monitoring their own health at home cannot do so without the assistance of a technician. This has hampered the adoption of the technology.

Continued here:

In latest generation of tiny biosensors, size isn't everything

While giving a talk at a conference in Australia in the mid-2000s, IBM Research's lead scientist for the advanced organic materials group, James Hedrick, had an encounter that would make him rethink his career. At one point, Hedrick--who holds more than 100patents--took a question from a woman in the audience. It wasn't what he was expecting. "Why are you wasting your time with all this electronics stuff?" asked Dr. Yi Yan Yang, who works at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology in Singapore. "You need to work with me." That evening, Yang filled Hedrick in on how she was using high-tech nanomaterials for medical purposes. "She was absolutely right," Hedrick recalls. "I was wasting time doing just semiconductors."

The result was IBM's unusual nanomedicine program, an ongoing collaboration between Hedrick's team at the Almaden, Californiabased IBM Research and Yang's group of researchers in Singapore. The project is tackling a range of ambitious projects: creating better antimicrobial and antifungal agents, new methods of drug delivery, and novel ways of combating such diseases as HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis. It may seem strange that computer-hardware giant IBM is pouring resources into experimental nanomedicine, but it's part of a larger trend within the company. "There is a huge group of IBMers who think we should be using our intellectual know-how to address global problems," says Spike Narayan, director of IBM Research's science and technology group. "As we've pushed the boundaries and engaged with other disciplines, we've found that some of our capabilities in materials and nanotechnology are very relevant in addressing challenges related to water, energy, the environment, and health care. That's the motivation."

Although it has yet to yield a commercial product (Narayan says several joint ventures are in the works), the program also makes sense from a business perspective. Even as the price of computing power keeps falling for consumers, R&D and manufacturing costs are steadily increasing for semiconductor producers. That's squeezing profits: Between 2000 and 2012, IBM's hardware business went from contributing 35% of the company's pretax income to just 14%. Perhaps that's why in February 2014, Big Blue reportedly hired Goldman Sachs to explore a potential sale of its semiconductor operation. New areas such as nanomedicine could offer a way for IBM to continue profiting from its cutting-edge research in nanomaterials even if it does get out of semiconductors. "Now we have an ITcentric focus," says Narayan, "but there's no reason we couldn't be more materials-focused, providing enabling technology for other companies."

The nanomedicine group's first big breakthrough was the creation of polymer-based nanoparticles that can target and kill MRSA, a potentially deadly drug-resistant bacterium. The nanoparticles engineered by the IBMSingapore team--dubbed "ninja particles"--use electrostatic attraction to target infected cells. Because the polymers used to create ninja particles are biodegradable, they pass out of the body once they've done their job. While the particles haven't yet been submitted for FDA approval, IBM is working with pharmaceutical, consumer-products, and medical-device companies to explore applications.

In the past year, the pace of innovation has accelerated. The Hedrick-Yang group published a paper in December that describes a method for breaking down PET--the stuff plastic bottles are made of--and reconstructing it into a nanofiber that can kill fungal infections on contact. In the lab, these nanofibers were more effective in fewer doses than conventional antifungal drugs, in addition to being nontoxic and biodegradable. Since the polymers used in both chip manufacture and nanomedicine are generally derived from petroleum, the ability to instead start from recycled material could reduce industrial consumption of oil and gas while providing a new use for plastic waste.

Hedrick and his partners have also made headway in drug delivery, coaxing nanoparticles to self-assemble into a gel-like material that can encapsulate molecules of a drug and release them at a particular location in the body over an extended period of time. When the Singapore team encapsulated the breast cancer drug Herceptin into the hydrogel and injected it into animals, their tumors shrank more than 75%, and the drug remained active and effective in the bloodstream for a month after a single injection. Tumors in animals given a regular IV injection of the drug didn't shrink at all, according to results published in November 2013.

Potential medical and consumer applications for materials coming out of the nanomedicine program are practically limitless: they could be injected; applied as a topical gel to treat wounds and infections; included in products such as soap, hand sanitizer, and shampoo; or applied as a germ-fighting coating on everything from medical devices to cutting boards and toothbrushes. Before they can be commercialized, all of these products will require approval by either the EPA or FDA, so rather than bring products to market on its own, IBM will aim to collaborate with partners that have more regulatory and manufacturing expertise. "Increasingly, in these nontraditional, interdisciplinary spaces, no one has all the capabilities," says Narayan. "As we jointly develop [intellectual property], there will be all kinds of royalty and other revenue streams coming out." The first product to make it out of the lab will most likely be an antimicrobial material to clean surfaces in hospitals.

For Hedrick, pivoting from his comfort zone in silicon hardware has been a learning process. "When I first started this, we went to some major pharma companies, and I got my backside handed to me pretty quick," he says. "Now I feel very comfortable going into a room with scientists and executives and rattling off proteins and numbers and names. A lot of the time [when he's not in meetings], though--I kid you not--I have Wikipedia open on my phone."

Inspired in part by the recent launch of an IBM Research lab in Africa, Hedrick is excited about deploying nanomaterials to fight illnesses that disproportionately afflict the region, including tuberculosis, dengue fever, and HIV. He also hopes to look at ways to use nanocontainers to deliver drugs across the blood-brain barrier--a major challenge in treating conditions such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. "Even three years ago, I would have been surprised by what we've been able to accomplish so far," he says. "IBM Research has given us significant latitude and freedom. Because they've always kept the lights on, we're able to address these grand challenges in a unique way."

Originally posted here:

How IBM Is Using Nanotechnology To Tackle MRSA And HIV

Regulatory News:

NANOBIOTIX (Euronext: NANO ISIN: FR0011341205), a clinical-stage nanomedicine company pioneering novel approaches for the local treatment of cancer, today announced that it has been selected by the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) to present data from its clinical trial evaluating NBTXR3 in advanced soft tissue sarcoma.

The clinical trial will be presented during the congress session dedicated to sarcoma.

This years ASCO will take place in Chicago from 31 May to 3 June, 2014. The Annual Meeting brings together more than 25,000 oncology professionals from a broad range of clinical research specialties.

The NBTXR3 study was selected from over 5,500 abstracts received by the Scientific Program Committee of ASCO for review.

Laurent Levy, CEO of Nanobiotix said: We are honored that ASCO has invited us to present our NBTXR3 data in front of the international oncology community. This is an encouraging step for our team and our partners and we will continue to develop innovative therapies aimed to improve patient care in the fight against cancer.

About NANOBIOTIX - http://www.nanobiotix.com

Nanobiotix (Euronext: NANO / ISIN: FR0011341205) is a clinical-stage nanomedicine company pioneering novel approaches for the local treatment of cancer. The Companys first-in-class, proprietary technology, NanoXray, enhances radiotherapy energy to provide a new, more efficient treatment for cancer patients. NanoXray products are compatible with current radiotherapy treatments and are meant to treat a wide variety of cancers via multiple routes of administration.

Nanobiotixs lead product NBTXR3, based on NanoXray, is currently under clinical development for soft tissue sarcoma and locally advanced head and neck cancer. The Company, based in Paris, France, has partnered with PharmaEngine for clinical development and commercialization of NBTXR3 in Asia.

Nanobiotix is listed on the regulated market of NYSE Euronext in Paris (ISIN: FR0011341205, Euronext ticker: NANO, Bloomberg: NANO: FP).

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Nanobiotix Selected to Present Data from NBTXR3 Clinical Trial at the 50th Annual Meeting of the American Society of ...

Los Angeles,CA (PRWEB) April 01, 2014

Speaking on this occasion, Dr. Srinubabu. G, MD of OMICS Publishing Group has said that International Conference Nanotek-2014 would be focusing the Nanoscience and its applications in a brighter shade by prominently exposing its uses in the fields of nanotechnology, pharmaceutics, nanomedicine and materials science. He said that the Nanotechnologys potentiality in delivering ecofriendly pharmaceutical products and host friendly drug delivery systems will be explored to the extent possible to empower the communities.

Eminent Nobel Laureate Prof. Harold Kroto of the Florida State University, USA delivers his valuable keynote address on Carbon in Nano and Outer Space and he has given the welcome message for the Nanotek-2014 as "Recent exciting developments in our understanding of nanostructured materials promise paradigm shifting advances in device applications and meetings such as Nanotek 2014 facilitate the cross-disciplinary research which will be needed to overcome the major technical hurdles if this promise is to be realised."

Reputed personalities in the field of Nanoscience & Technology including Prof. Haruo Sugi of Teikyo University, Japan, Prof. Claudio Nicolini from The Fondazione Elba-Nicolini, Italy, Prof. Fatih M. Uckun of University of Southern California, USA, and Prof. Julia Y. Ljubimova of Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, USA and more are playing the pivotal role as organizing committee members for this International event, anticipated to be one of the best amide the Scientific Conferences organized on Nanotechnology and Nanomedicine

Prof. Claudio Nicolini from The Fondazione Elba-Nicolini, Italy is organizing a pre-conference workshop on Structural Nanoproteomics and Prof. Ashok K. Vaseashta from International Clean Water Institution, USA organizes a workshop on NT4W-Nanotechnology for Water Generation, Contamination Detection and Purification. Asian News Channel, an Asia pacific news channel that provides 24/7 News & Feature service for Asia Pacific and Africa Region acts as a collaborator for this scientific event, while American Elements, a global manufacturer of several nonmaterial including nanoparticles, nanopowder, nanotubes, nanowire, quantum dots, submicron, -325 mesh, etc., sponsors the advertisements.

OMICS Group Nanotek-2014 aimed to cover multiple applications of nanostructures such Nanomaterials, Nanoplasmonics, Carbon Nanotubes, Nanoelectronics, Quantum dots etc and it is expected to enhance the understanding of the participants on areas like nanoparticles and improve the characterizations, clinical, medical, physical and chemical properties. It focuses on various aspects of Nanosceince & Technology, including Nanomaterials, Nanostructures, Nanomedicine, Nanodevices and Nanosensors, Materials science and Engineering, Nanoelectronics, Nanotechnology in Energy Systems, Environment, Health and Safety Issues of Nanotechnology, Recent Trends in Nanotechnology, Applications of Nanotechnology, Biomedical Engineering and Applications.

OMICS Publishing Group hosts 350 Open access, Online Science Journals and hosts more than 100 International conferences worldwide. With 30,000 strong editorial board members drawn from academics, research and industries, OMICS Group Journals publishes the best papers presented in Nanotek-2014.

The conference is expected to unveil the latest developments in this field and is intended to channelize its great potentialities in empowering the society.

Reddy S Nanotek-2014 Organizing Committee Engineering Conference 5716 Corsa Ave., Suite 110, Westlake, Los Angeles, CA 91362-7354, USA Tel: 1-650-268-9744 Fax: 1-650-618-1414 nanotek2014(at)omicsonline(dot)us

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OMICS Groups Nanotechnology International Conference to Challenge the Old Frontiers

NANOMEDICINE 3 Quantum Dot Technology for Multiplexing Applications#

By: NanoMedicine

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NANOMEDICINE 3 Quantum Dot Technology for Multiplexing Applications# - Video