NANOTECHNOLOGYBASICS AND ITS

APPLICATION IN MEDICINE

Keith Proinsias

What is Nanotechnology?

What is Nanotechnology?

Nanoscience: involves research and technology

development at 1nm to 100nm range (nanoscale)

Nanotechnology creates and uses structures that

have novel properties because of their small size

Nanotechnology builds on the ability to control or

manipulate at atomic scale

What is Nanotechnology?

History

The word Nanotechnology is new, its existance

has been around for a long time

History
Abalone
Mollusk
Strong shell, consisting of organised calcium carbonate
into strong nanostructured bricks

History

29th December , 1959

At the annual meeting of the American Physical Society
at California Institute of Technology

Theres plenty of room at the bottom

Richard P. Feynman
Known as the father of nanotechology

Why Nanotechnology?

Applications
Medical
Bio-materials
Drug delivery
Energy and industrial
Solar / Fuel Cells
Lighting
Coating and powders
Paint
Textiles
Devices and microelectronics
Sensors
Microprocessors / memory and storage

Outline
Nanoparticles
Quantum dots
Nanotubes
Fabrication

Nanoparticles

A nanoparticle is a microscopic particle

with at least one dimension less than 100nm
Nanoparticles are of great scientific interest as
they are effectively a bridge between bulk
materials and atomic or molecular structures
Gold nanoparticles exhibit vast medical/health advantages

www.sciencedaily.com/articles/n/nanoparticle.htm

Quantum Dots
Semiconducting materials
Traditionally chalcogenides
(selenides or sulfides) of metals such
as cadmium or zinc
Range 2-10nm in diameter.
Display unique optical and electrical
properties due to their size
Fabricated using the bottom up
approach

Quantum Dots
Emission of photons under excitation, which are visible
Emission depends on size not on the material

Size Matters
Smaller the dot blue end of spectrum
Larger the dot red end of spectrum
They can also be tuned
beyond visible light to
IR or UV

Quantum Dots
Applications:
Medical imaging and disease detection
Produce inexpensive, industrial quality white light
(e.g. LEDs)
Solar cells and photovoltaics

Example:
Quantum Dots and Porphyrins

 Porphyrins adsorbed onto CdTe quantum dots

Results indicate that these type of porphyrin/dots can be used
as photosensitizes in photodynamic therapy
Journal of colloid and interface, 2010, 344, 596-602.

BuckeyBall
Also known as Fullerene
A round molecule consisting of
60 carbon atoms
12 pentagonal faces
20 hexagonal faces
1nm in diameter
Application:
Target delivery

Example:
Buckeyball and Porphyrins

 Preparation of photoactive ITO-H2P-C60 electrodes

Irradiation using visible light injects electrons into the ITO slide,
through direct and indirect mediation
Applied in light harvesting
Nano lett., 2002, 2, 965-968.

Carbon Nanotubes
Sheets of graphite rolled into a tube
Single walled nanotubes (SWNT)
can have a diameter of 2nm and
a length of 100m
There are different types of
carbon nanotube structures,
a) armchair
b) zigzag
c) chiral

Carbon Nanotubes

Applications:
Field Emissions
Conductive plastics
Conductive adhesives
Molecular electronics
Energy storage
Thermal storage
Structural composites
Catalytic and biomedical supports

Examples:
Carbon Nanotubes and Porphyrins

 Prepared carbon nanotubes linked to Zn-porphyrins

via the click reaction
Applied in light harvesting
J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2009, 131, 15394-15402.

 Covalently bonded porphyrins to carbon nanotubes

Construct novel photovoltaic devices and light-harvesting
systems
J. Am. Chem. Soc., 2005, 127, 6916-6917.

Fabrication at nano scale

Two approaches to fabricating at nano scale,
1. Top Down
2. Bottom Up

Nano Scale Fabrication: Top Down

Similar to a sculptor cutting away at a block of

mable.
Begins at large scale and ends with a nano
scaled product
Used in the computer industry in creating
microprocessors
Utilizes a techniques such as,
Colloidal synthesis
Epitoxy
Lithrography

Lithography
Radiation is shone through a template onto a surface
coated with radiation-sensitive resist
The resist material usually consists of polymer
polymethyl methacrylate.
The resist is then removed
The surface is chemically treated to produce the nanostructure

Nano Scale Fabrication: Bottom

Down

Employs self-assembly process

Under specific conditions the atoms and

molecules arrange themselves into the product

Self Assembly

Originated from a process that occurs naturally in all

living systems
e.g. Protein formation formed via successive addition
of hundreds of amino acids
Advantages:
Rapid construction
Occur automatically performed under mild conditions

Self Assembly: mono/multilayer

An example of such self assembly is self assembled

monolayer's

Molecules are organized in an orderly fashion

The addition of further layers, forming multilayer's, is

possible

Example:
Multilayer Assembly

 Ruthenium metallodendrimer as the countercation within a mixed

addenda Dawson type heteropolyanion based multilayer assembly
Preparation of a multilayer system that possesses electrocatalytic
ability towards the reduction of iodate
Zynek, M.; Serantoni, M.; Beloshapkin, S., Dempsey, E.; McCormac, T. Electroanalysis, 2007, 19, 681-689

Fabrication: Carbon Nanotubes

Three methods:
Laser evaporation: within a quartz tube containing
argon gas and the graphite target, its heated to
1200oC

Carbon arc: a potential is applied across two carbon

electrodes under 500 torr of pressure. Carbon atom
from the positive electrode form nanotubes on the
negative electrode

Chemical vapor deposition: decomposition of

hydrocarbon gas (CH4) at 110oC

Nanomedicine

Nanomedicine
Nanomedicine: is the medical application of nanotechnology

Nanoshells
Nanogels
Nanorobotics

Nanomedicine
Advantages:
Suitable for encapsulation
Release drugs in a controlled manner
More efficient uptake of cells

Nanomedicine: Nanoshell
Effective drug delivery to various parts of the body is directly

affected by particle size. Therefore, nano-structures have the

potential to enhance drug bioavailability

Strategy:
Attach monoclonal antibiotics or cell-surface
receptors ligands that bind specifically to molecules
found on the surface of the cancer

Nanomedicine: Nanoshell
Nanoscale drug delivery can be implemented:
Pulmonary therapies
Gene delivery vectors
Stabilization of drug molecules that would
otherwise degrade too rapidly
Nanoparticles are already used for target drug delivery
which enables early detection
e.g. Abraxne (active ingredient is paclitaxel) uses
nanoscale particles of the natural protein albumin
and can be delivered without the use of solvents

Nanomedicine: Nanoshells
Tumor detection
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Used to target tumors and provide detection using

SERS (surface enhanced Raman spectroscopy) in
vivo
The nanoparticles are encapsulated with a thiolmodified polyethylene glycol coating for stability
And they are conjugated with an antibody to increase
selectivity to tumor cells

Examples:
Nanoshell and porphyrin

Nanomedicine: Nanoshells
Incorporation of porphyrin molecules into nanoshells can
be used in clinical applications for imagery and therapy

Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews, 2010, 62, 1094-1124

Nanomedicine: Nanogels

A mixture of nano-siezed particles within a gel usually

protein based
Ability to cross into cells of living organisms
Uniformed network of crosslinked polymer chains within
a spherical nanoparticle
Incorporate targeting groups (cancer treatment)

Nanomedicine: Nanogels

Example of formation:
Using atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP)
Allows precise regulation of composition and
architecture of polymers created

Examples:
Nanogel and porphyrin/cobalamin

 Synthesis of biocompatible
nanogels, using intra/intermolecular
disulfide cross linking with PDS
containing polymers
Noncovalently encapsulate dye
molecules, which can be released in
response to a redox trigger,
glutathione (GSH)
Encapsulate a hydrophobic
chemotherapeutic drug, Doxorubicin

J. Am. Chem., 2010, 132, 17227-17235

 Hydrophilic chitosan-based nanogels decorated with

hyaluronate and encapsulating photosensitizers are
excellent drug-delivery systems for the selective delivery of
photosensitizers to macrophages and photodynamic
destruction of cell

Journal of Controlled Release, 2010, 144, 242-250

 Synthesized Vitamin B12

dextron nanoparticales
Found to protect
entrapped insulin
against gut proteases

Journal of controlled release, 2007, 117, 421-429.

Nanomedicine: Nanorobotics

Nanorobotics
Nano: small scale smart materials
Robot: a mechanically animated machine that is
capable of impossible feats

NanoMedicine: Nanorobotics

Application:
Early diagnosis
Target drug-delivery
Biomedical instrumentation surgery

No artificial non-biological nanorobots have so far

been created, it remains a hypothetical concept at this
time

www.sciencedaily.com

Thank You
Any Questions?