Through my extra reading I researched further into the fast changing and developing world of nanotechnology and its use in medicine.
Nanotechnology is defined as the study and application of species on a nanoscale which can be used across all the other science fields, such as chemistry, biology, physics, materials science, and engineering. It is a hugely versatile area as it deals with the manipulation of individual atoms and molecules to be used industrially. Currently, it is at the forefront of chemical research and it brings together many aspects of science such as chemical and biological engineering. A huge part of nanotechnology and nanoscience is excelling rapidly. This is nanomedicine. It can now be used to complete many tasks that are on such a small and intricate level they have been extremely hard to do. Drug delivery, tissue engineering and cell targeting are just a few areas where nanoscience is helping to treat illnesses and injuries now more than ever.
Nanotechnology in drug delivery is a process that while is still controversial and experimental holds a lot of promise for solving some current issues with medical treatment. It can be used to help those suffering from heart disease. Researchers at Clemson University have tested and designed a nanoparticle that utilises a protein to help heal a damaged portion of an artery. Lab studies on mice have proved that using a nanoparticle to target the delivery of an anticoagulant drug it reduces the dosage required. Issues such as arterial plaque may be a thing of the past as new nanoparticles have been designed to target the plaque and dissolve in the presence of hydrogen peroxide to release the drug needed at the specific site required. Not only heart and vessel issue could be helped. The medical world is constantly looking for new ways to help those suffering from diabetes. A method being developed is a structure containing insulin, nanocapsules and an enzyme. When the patient glucose levels rise the nanocapsules release Hydrogen ions. The ions bind to the fibres of the structure causing them to have an overall positive charge. This makes the fibres repel and opens up the structure where insulin is released.
Possibly the largest area of medicine where nanoscience is helping is with cancer. Nanotechnology is thought to reduce the negative effects of chemotherapy by selective targeting and delivery of anticancer drugs directly to a tumour. Platinum cancer therapy has many negative side effects, the key to reducing them is to use gold nanoparticles. The toxic level of the platinum is dependent on the oxidation state of the molecule which it is bonded to. Researchers choose a platinum-containing molecule with a low toxicity to attach the gold nanoparticles to. When the platinum-bearing nanomolecule reaches a tumour, it comes into contact with an acidic solution. This changes the platinum to its toxic form allowing it to kill the malignant cells. The advantage of nano-sized drug administers is that due to their size they can increase the drugs overall therapeutic index as chemotherapeutics can be encapsulated or conjugated to the nanoparticles surface. One issue with inserting a foreign object into a body is the immediate rejection of the patient's immune system. However, researchers have designed a technique to prevent plasma cells from recognising the nanoparticle giving it sufficient time to reach a tumour and administer the chemotherapeutic. Many nanoparticles have ethylene glycol molecules attached to help the nanoparticle circulate the body unnoticed. Another technique prevents the particle from being washed out of the bloodstream. Nanoparticles are coated with hydrophobic polymers which repel plasma proteins and prevents the nanoparticle from being cleared. The small size of the nanoparticles also aids in avoiding detection by the body's immune system and as a result preventing their degradation.
Many other nanomolecule and nanoparticles are being developed such as nano-diamonds embedded in contact lenses to treat glaucoma and mesoporous nanoparticles that are activated when an enzyme only found in ageing cells is present. Nanoscience links together all types of science, engineering and technology and it is the future of many of these fields.
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