AFM nanotools for surgery of biological Cells

Abstract

Using a method of electron-beam induced deposition, we have been able to fabricate specialized AFM probes with application as "nanotools" for the manipulation of biological structures ("nanosurgery"). We describe several such tools, including a "nanoscalpel", " nanoneedles" for probing intracellular structures, and a "nanotome" which can separate surface layers from a biological structure. These applications are demonstrated by performing nanomanipulation on corneocyte cells from the outer layer of human skin. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd 2011.