Nanoscience: Convergence with Biomedical and Biological Applications

Abstract

Nanoparticles (NPs) are tiny materials exhibiting a size range of 1–100 nm. Nanoparticles are used in biomedical applications like bioimaging, therapy, drug delivery, and biosensors; therapeutic applications such as treatment of cancer, inflammatory diseases, like inflammatory bowel diseases, inflammatory lung diseases, ophthalmic inflammatory diseases, and rheumatoid arthritis, wound healing, and cardiovascular diseases; nanoremediation; food industry; and agriculture. Metal oxides NPs and gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are used in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron-emitting tomography (PET), and computed tomography (CT). Nano-conjugates of drugs possess more cytotoxicity as compared to without NPs drug treatment of myeloid leukemia. Nanoparticles like gold half shell multifunctional NPs, polylactic-co-glycolic acid (PLGA) NPs, and solid lipid nanoparticles have been used for the delivery of drugs at the inflammatory site for the treatment of inflammatory diseases. AuNPs can be used as antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anti-inflammation agents for wound healing and burns. Nanoscale metals, carbon nanotubes, zeolites, fibers, metal oxides, and titanium oxides have been explored for remediation of toxic compounds. Nanoscale food additives can be used to increase the shelf life, flavor, texture, nutrient composition or even to detect the contaminants or pathogens in food. Biodegradable plastics such as polybutylene succinate (PBS), polylactic acid (PLA), and polyhydroxybutyrate (PHB) are polymers that can be easily degraded to nontoxic compounds in the presence of microorganisms. Nano-TiO2 enhances the absorption of inorganic nutrients, accelerates the breakdown of organic substance, and can quench oxygen free radicals produced during the photosynthetic, so it can increase the rate of photosynthesis. Nanosensors like parathion, methyl parathion, pirimicarb, fenitrothion, and paraoxon are used to detect the residues of pesticides. Nanoparticles can also be used as biomarkers for the detection of viral, bacterial, and fungal pathogens in agriculture.