Inorganic nanoarchitectonics for biological applications

Abstract

Inorganic structures and their assemblies play important roles in artificial materials for biological applications. In this short review, we briefly summarize recent research on bioapplicable materials supported by inorganic structures possibly reflecting the concept of nanoarchitectonics, according to classification of unit nanostructures (nanoparticles, nanospheres, nanosheets, layer-structures, and nanotubes), internally nanostructured materials (mesoporous materials), organized assemblies (mainly layer-by-layer (LbL) assemblies), and hierarchical structures. Bioapplications such as sensing, drug delivery, and cell imaging are described. © 2011 American Chemical Society.