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Nanotechnology
Review of potential commercial applications of nanotechnology: Moore, 2001
- first vision of usage of nanotechnology: Richard Feynman "saw the day when it would be possible to build miniature devices bottom-up, starting with single atoms or molecules"
- current commercial applications:
dirt-repelling surface coatings [JKS2]
paint additives
- future commercial applications:
biomedical:
disease diagnosis
drug delivery
- prognosis:
"massive interdisciplinary research is needed to make the ideas applicable and broaden their scope. Information emerging from the human genome project will turn up countless targets for nano research" (Moore, 2001)
"biosensors could make an impact fairly soon" (Lieber/Moore, 2001)
Definition of nanoscience:
the study of systems of the order of 1 to 100 nm in size
Groups working in nano-field:
Hermann Gaub, Chair of Applied Physics at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, Germany
- biophysics of single molecules
- folding
- attaching the tip of a piezoelectric cantilever to the end of a membrane protein and pulling, the protein can be observed unraveling in the reverse order of the folding process during membrane insertion (together with Oesterhelt (MPI Biochemistry, Martinsried, Germany) using bacteriorhodopsin)
- measuring mechanical properties of structural proteins such as titin
- planned expansions: protein-protein interactions by measuring the force needed to separate the two molecules (can distinguish between specific and non-specific binding)
- "Gaub thinks that the first exploitation of this technology will be in the pharmaceutical sector, where the strength of binding of drug molecules to their intended biological target could be assayed"
==> more precise, better and faster assays when applied to genetic diagnostics and genotyping
- Gaub's company: www.nanotype.de
John Zhang, Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta, GA
magnetic nano particles
nanomagnets can be guided by external electric fields, could be used to deliver drugs to disease sites
avoids "first-pass degradation" of drugs in the liver
challenge: particles have to be made friendly to the immune system [JKS3]
Charles Lieber, Harvard University
nano tweezers made from two carbon nano tubes, which can be brought together by applying a voltage across them
in conjunction with AFM can be used to map the shape of a molecule at a resolution of 5-10A
- useful tool in haplotyping (Woolley et al. (2000) Nature Biotech 18, 760-763.)
- potential application: use of carbon nano tubes in the gross determination of protein complex orientation
- "most promising line of research in germs of large-scale application": semiconductor nano wires (quote from Moore, 2001)
having electrical properties that can be readily modulated and controlled
binding of a single molecule to a nono wire can be detected by a change in conductance
grids:
the junctions operate as read-in and read-out nodes
in grids, one could "exploit all the chemistry of chip technology without the need for fluorophore labeling" (quote from Lieber), because the nano wires are so sensitive that you don't need to amply signals as you do with fluorescence in conventional chips
functional nano grids are demonstrated to be feasible: Duan et al. (2001) Nature 409, 66-69.
Role of nanotechnology in different countries:
Germany: "Nanotechnology and biotechnology are two fields of research with with huge potential for development at their interface" quote from bmb+f at www.nanonet.de
German Biotechnology budget: EURO 110 million
German joint projects Nano biotechnology 20-25 million over next 3 years
Dietmar Wechsler (bmb+f) predicts impact in
- gene therapy
- biochips
- diagnostics
- molecular electronics based on biological materials , e.g. optically activated transistors [JKS1]
US: Clinton pledged $500 million to nanotechnology research
© 2002 Judith Klein-Seetharaman, University of Pittsburgh. This website was created December 12, 2002 and updated December 12, 2002. For questions or comments please contact Judith Klein-Seetharaman at jks33@pitt.edu.