Applications: Nanobiosystems, Medicine, and Health

Over the past decade, nanomedicine and nanobiology have undergone radical transformations from fantasy to real science. The days of discussing advances in this area in the context of “nanobots” are over, and systems and nanomaterials have emerged that provide major analytical or therapeutic advantages over conventional molecule-based structures and approaches. We have come to recognize that much of biology is executed at the nanoscale level, therefore providing a rational approach to using the structure and function of engineered nanomaterials at the nano-bio interface for interrogation of disease, diagnosis, treatment, and imaging at levels of sophistication not possible before [1]. Fabrication of a host of nanostructures has been coupled with advanced chemical manipulation in order to impart biological recognition and interaction capabilities. Often, chemical manipulation results in nanomaterials that provide performance enhancement of therapeutics, imaging agents, diagnostics, and materials for tissue engineering and for basic science applications.