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Abstracts: All living and nonliving matter is
universally made up of nanoparticles. Being of sizes
below 0.1 micrometer to 1 nm, nanoelements are
ubiquitous. They range from fine silica present in sand
to the genetic material commonly called DNA in living
cells.
The foundation for nanotechnology was laid with the
discovery and synthesis of nanomaterials such as
fullerenes, dendrimers, nanotubes, and nanoparticles
such as quantum dots and particles derived from gold and
tin oxide. Due to differential properties of elements at
the nanoscale when compared with the macro scale,
nanoscience has capitalized on the properties of
nanomaterials, thereby causing developments that
sufficiently integrate these nanoelements. Hence,
nanotechnology can be defined as technology that
incorporates nanomaterials to develop devices or improve
upon existing devices to perform enhanced functions that
are traditionally not in the realm of functionality. The
integration of nanotechnology in medical and life
science applications is termed nanobiotechnology and
used interchangeably with nanomedicine that strictly
refers to development of nanoparticulate therapeutics.
The Rationale for Nanobiotechnology
Biology is a complex phenomenon. The interaction of a
multitude of genes and proteins leads to a complicated
network of signaling molecules that result in the
phenotype and physiology of living systems. With the
recent outburst in genome sequencing and the data
emerging out of such an exercise, biologists have
renewed their interest in delving deeper into biological
phenomena at the cellular and molecular level to unravel
possible interactions that were previously unknown. To
achieve the goal of understanding physiological life
better, biologists have traditionally employed
instruments such as electron microscopy, molecular
biology, and reporter proteins that track activity in
the cellular milieu. While biological tools have their
advantages, the possibility of experiments failing or
specimen destruction due to degradation of sample
reporters and staining compounds led biologists to think
out of the box and look for solutions that would help
them pursue research better and faster. The special
properties of nanomaterials such as their ability to
pass through the cell membrane, tunable fluorescence
wavelengths, lack of quenching and many other properties
in the same vein have made nanotechnology applications a
favorite among biologists.
The interest toward nanomaterials due to their special
properties has led to a unique relationship of delivery
and dependence. Due to the unique and adaptable nature
of nanomaterials, biologists are tending to depend on
nanotechnology, and simultaneously, nanotechnology has
delivered by seamless integration of the fundamental
technologies in nanotechnology into the life sciences.
The unique relationship of delivery and dependence has
given birth to the unique interface that the world has
christened nanobiotechnology.
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