Nanotechnology refers to research and technology development at the atomic, molecular, and macromolecular scale, leading to the controlled manipulation and study of structures and devices with length scales in the 1- to 100-nanometers range.

2. Nanotechnology
and its uses in
medicine
Prepared by:
Assistant lecture of Oral Medicine, Periodontology,
Diagnosis and Dental Radiology (Al-Azhar University)

3. Nanotechnology refers to research and technology
development at the atomic, molecular, and
macromolecular scale, leading to the controlled
manipulation and study of structures and devices with
length scales in the 1- to 100-nanometers range.

4. Nanotechnology has achieved
the status as one of the critical
research endeavors of the early
21st century, as scientists harness
the unique properties of atomic
and molecular assemblages built
at the nanometer scale.

5. Our ability to manipulate the physical, chemical, and biologic
properties of these particles affords researchers the capabili
to rationally design and use nanoparticles for drug delivery,
image contrast agents, and for diagnostic purposes.

7. The term commonly used in Europe
is microsystem technology (MST),
and in Japan it is micromachines.
Another term generally used is
micro/nanodevices.
MEMS/NEMS terms are also now
used in a broad sense and include
electrical, mechanical, fluidic,
optical, and/or biological functions.
MEMS/NEMS for optical applications
are referred to as
micro/nanooptoelectromechanical
systems (MOEMS/NOEMS)

11. The fabrication of conventional
devices relies on the assembly of
macroscopic building blocks with
specific configurations.
The shapes of these components
are carved out of larger materials
by exploiting physical methods.
This top-down approach to
engineered building blocks is
extremely powerful and can
deliver.

12. The chemical construction
of nano-scaled molecules
from modular building
blocks also offers the
opportunity for engineering
specific properties in the
resulting assemblies.
In particular,
electroactive and
photoactive fragments
can be integrated into
single molecules.

13. The ability of these functional
subunits to accept/donate
electrons and photons can be
exploited to design nano-
scaled electronic and
photonic devices.
Indeed, molecules that
respond to electrical and
optical stimulations
producing detectable outputs
have been designed already
[2.16].

14. A major challenges are (1) to master the
operating principles of the molecule-based
devices that have been and continue to be
assembled and (2) to expand and improve
the fabrication strategies available to
incorporate molecules into reliable device
architectures.

25. Carbon nano-tubes have
long been synthesized as
products of the action of
a catalyst on the gaseous
species originating from
the thermal
decomposition of
hydrocarbons .
The first evidence that
the nanofilaments
produced in this way
were actually nanotubes
– that they exhibited an
inner cavity – can be
found in the transmission
electron microscope
micrographs published by
Radushkevich et al. in
1952 [3.1]

65. Synthetic peptide monomers can self-assemble
into PNM such as nanotubes, nanospheres,
hydrogels, etc. which represent a novel class of
nanomaterials.
Molecular recognition processes lead to the
formation of supramolecular PNM ensembles
containing crystalline building blocks.
Such low-dimensional highly ordered regions create a
new physical situation and provide unique physical
properties based on electron-hole QC phenomena

66. In the case of asymmetrical crystalline
structure, basic physical phenomena
such as linear electro-optic,
piezoelectric, and nonlinear optical
effects, described by tensors of the odd
rank, should be explored.
Some of the PNM crystalline
structures permit the existence
of spontaneous electrical
polarization and observation of
ferroelectricity.

67. The PNM crystalline arrangement creates highly porous
nanotubes when various residues are packed into structural
network with specific wettability and electrochemical
properties.

76. Near-term
applications
include drug-
delivery
platforms
[1], enhanced
image contrast
agents [2],
chip-based
nanolabs
capable of
monitoring
[3] and
manipulating
individual cells
[4], and nanoscale probes
that can track the
movements of cells [5]
and individual molecules
[6] as they move about in
their environment.

77. Such an unprecedented ability to observe
and influence complex systems in vivo
and in real time provides detailed
information about the fundamental
mechanisms and signaling pathways
involved in the progression of disease
and greatly extends the existing toolset
for drug delivery and noninvasive drug
monitoring.

78. Objects at this scale, such as “nano-particles,” take on
novel properties and functions that differ markedly from
those seen in the bulk scale.
The small size, surface tailor ability,
improved solubility, and multifunctionality
of nanoparticles open many new research
avenues for biologists.

79. The novel properties
of nano-materials
offer the ability to
interact with complex
biological functions in
new ways—operating
at the very scale of
biomolecules.
This rapidly growing
field allows cross-
disciplinary
researchers the
opportunity to design
and develop
multifunctional
nanoparticles that can
target, diagnose, and
treat diseases such as
cancer.

80.  Given this multifunctional capability, one can
imagine building a nano-particle that can target a
specific tissue or cell type, delivering a contrast
agent that allows for noninvasive imaging and a
therapeutic payload to the target.

81.  A nanoparticle might even contain a reporter, such
as an apoptotic marker, which signals that the payload
has been delivered and is having the desired
therapeutic effect.

82. Such combinatorial
nanostructures may eventually
provide the means to achieve
“personalized medicine” by
tailoring drug delivery to
individual response.
Although this may seem
futuristic, several groups have
already created
multifunctional nanodevices
and are testing them in in vitro
and in vivo systems