nano bio detector sensor

Human saliva plays a major role in lubricating the oral cavity, which in turn aids in various functions such as swallowing, speaking, and maintaining the integrity of the hard tissues of the teeth. In addition, saliva can now play a crucial role in the early diagnosis of heart attack, according to a multi-institutional study, the findings of which was presented at the recent annual meeting of the American Association for Dental Research at Dallas, Texas.
The study, led by Dr John McDevitt, professor of chemistry and biochemistry at the University of Texas at Austin, was done in collaboration with researchers from the University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, and The University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio. The researchers developed nano-bio-chip sensor devices, biochemically programmed to detect blood serum proteins in saliva that are considered to be potential markers for cardiac diseases. Eighty patients who had symptoms of cardiac diseases were recruited for the study. Patients’ saliva was transferred from a tube to the nano-bio-chip, fitted to a credit card-sized lab card. The card was then inserted into an analyzer that provides the cardiac status of the patients within 15 minutes, along with identifying those at a higher risk of developing heart attack later in their life.
Cardiovascular diseases are the major cause of death among the United States population. Myocardial infarction, also known as heart attack, is caused due to decreased blood supply to the heart, leading to necrosis of the cardiac tissues. The National, Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI, 2004) estimated 1,200,000 cases of new and recurrent heart attacks in the US, annually. The symptoms include chest pain, usually described as tightness or squeezing across the anterior sternum that may radiate to the jaws, neck, arms, back and epigastrium; anxiety; lightheadedness; dyspnea; and wheezing. Most of the patients with heart attack do not show these specific symptoms and so get medical help only after irreversible damage is done to the cardiac tissues. If left untreated, the condition is fatal.
Previously, saliva has also been used in the detection of various diseased conditions including breast cancers, which are usually considered to be most difficult to detect. A study done by Streckfus CF, et al (Cancer Investigation, 2008) reported that saliva aids in early diagnosis of breast cancer. A group of Australian researchers led by Debattista J (Sexual Health, 2007) used the oral fluids for testing HIV antibodies. The researchers concluded that saliva can be a potential agent in testing HIV antibodies.
Saliva is considered as a potential diagnostic tool for diagnosing certain disorders as it can be obtained easily and also due to fact that there is a positive correlation between many parameters in serum and saliva. Now, salivary analysis, with the newly invented nano-bio-chip, can produce promising results for the early diagnoses of the cardiovascular diseases, thereby drastically reducing the complications and improving the patient’s prognosis and survival.

nano fights against cancer

They are only a few nanometers in size, but their impact is tremendous: The tiny particles drive cancer cells to their death in no time at all. At nano tech 2006 in Japan from February 21 to 23 Fraunhofer researchers demonstrated the great efficiency of nanoscopic particles as a vehicle for drug delivery.
Medicines that will make their own way through the body and attack precisely the diseased cells on reaching their destination – such has been the dream of physicians and pharmacists since time immemorial. Fraunhofer researchers working in the Nanotechnology Alliance have now come a little closer to reaching this goal. They
have developed bio-functional nanoparticles that cause necrosis in cancer cells. “These cell-like structures have a solid nucleus surrounded by proteins that detect and destroy cancer cells,“ explains Dr. Günter Tovar of the Fraunhofer Institute for Interfacial Engineering and Biotechnology IGB.

So how does it work? “Communication in the human body is a biochemical process based on the exchange of molecules,“ says Tovar. “We are trying to understand these communication processes and harness them for our own purposes.“ The tumor necrosis factor TNF for instance, releases a molecule that attaches itself to the receptors of the cancer cell and passes on its deadly message. To introduce the biological messenger TNF into the body, Tovar and his colleagues at Stuttgart University have developed bio-functional nanoparticles. Known as nanocytes, these carry TNF proteins on their surface. “In producing these particles, we benefit from the self-organizing capability of the 'building blocks': Once a contact has been established between the particles and the proteins, the proteins grow and envelop the nuclei without any further effort on our part,“ the researcher explains. Tovar tested the finished nanoparticles in a Petri dish. His findings were most encouraging: cancer cells that came into contact with the particles did indeed perish. The researchers documented this process on video, and will be showing the film at the Fraunhofer stand at nano tech 2006.

It will be a while before nanocytes can be used in the battle against cancer. First of all, a great deal of time and effort must be invested in clinical studies. But meanwhile the bio-functional nanoparticles have already proved their mettle in practical applications – as a tool for cell research or as a component in reagents for medical analysis.

Nano in medicine

Nanotechnologies have already attracted over $3bn of global government funding as part of efforts to enhance a range of disciplines including pharmaceuticals, drug delivery and healthcare monitoring. Advances in nanomaterials, nanostructures and nanosystems are expected to drive the value of the global nanotechnology market to over a trillion dollars by 2015, but many companies are remaining cautious, preferring to monitor developments in academia prior to making substantial investments.
Despite such trepidation, the pharma industry is beginning to adopt nanotools throughout the R&D process to facilitate the high throughput screening of drug repositories, the identification of new drug targets and biomarkers for preclinical and clinical studies and the development of diagnostics and imaging agents. 'Nanotechnology' is a new report published by Business Insights that provides a comprehensive review of nanotechnology and it's role in the development of next-generation nanomedicines. The nanotools and detection systems currently driving nanotechnology are profiled and the applications of nanotechnologies within the R&D process are assessed.
This report measures the impact of nanotechnologies currently being applied to target cancer, cardiovascular disease and CNS disorders and also explores the implementation strategies of leading pharmaceutical, healthcare and nanotechnology start-ups. Use this new report to assess the future of nanotechnology within pharma R&D, identify the innovations driving growth within the market and examine the implementation strategies of leading companies.
Key Findings
-Nano-enabled delivery systems are the fastest growing form of nanotechnology amongst major pharma companies, helping to improve the targeted delivery of old, existing and shelved products. However many companies remain cautious, choosing to monitor the progress of nanotechnology prior to making significant investments.
- Optical imaging tags will help to identify diseases earlier and may avoid the need for expensive, high tech laser-based equipment. Diagnostic imaging of this kind is being increasingly applied to animals in preclinical dosing studies.
- Regulatory authorities are supporting nanotechnologies that can improve the development of pharmaceuticals and diagnostic agents. Many regulatory policies are currently being reassessed to ensure innovation and safety when utilising nanotechnologies.
- Many governments are keen to apply nanotechnology across pharmaceuticals, drug delivery and healthcare monitoring in an effort to reduce R&D costs and enhance levels of productivity.
-Nanomaterials are being utilised to develop more sensitive and specific POC diagnostic and biocompatible implants. Nanowires and cantilever assay systems will expand the market by helping to shift diagnostic tests from central laboratories to point of diagnostics.

Nanotools against cancer

It has proved difficult to channel pharmaceuticals into the brain. A type of cell barrier protects the brain from pathogens and many harmful molecules. This blood-brain barrier also denies access to many therapeutic substances.
Studies have shown that nanoparticles (diameter between 10 and 1000 nm) with distinct surface properties can overcome this barrier.
At the University of Frankfurt am Main, a team headed by Prof. Dr. Jörg Kreuter is successfully working on transfering substances into the brain with the aid of microscopically small plastic spheres.
Magnetic nanoparticles could also be of use in combating cancer, as shown by the so-called magnetic liquid hyperthermia developed by Dr. Andreas Jordan and co-workers at the Charite Hospital in Berlin: Firstly, iron oxide particles are selectively transported into the carcinoma. Then, an alternating magnetic field heats the nanoparticles and thus the cancer cells, which are killed by overheating.

Inhaling bubbles of nano iron Oxide to fight lung cancer

Inhalation, or respiratory, therapy is a fairly old discipline of medicine that dates back to ancient times (and not always for purely therapeutic effects; witness the hookah). In the late 18th century, earthenware inhalers became popular for the inhalation of air drawn through infusions of plants and other ingredients and about 50 years ago the first pressurized metered dose inhaler was put on the market. Especially people suffering from asthma are very familiar with inhalers - devices that help deliver a specific amount of medication to the lungs. The delivery of drugs via the pulmonary route is a potentially effective form of therapy not only for asthma but also for for patients with other chronic diseases, including the debilitating hereditary disease, cystic fibrosis, type I diabetes (insulin is absorbed well through the lungs), and recently lung cancer. During inhalation therapy the drugs are delivered in aerosol form, meaning that very small particles of the drug are suspended in air (liquid particles make mist, solid particles make fume or dust). Unfortunately, state the-of-the-art aerosol delivery technologies do not allow to target aerosols to specific regions of the lung. Researchers in Germany now have show that aerosols containing magnetic nanoparticles can be guided inside the lungs and thus offer a potential new route for lung cancer treatment.
Current aerosol delivery techniques only allow to target aerosol deposition in the central lung regions or lung periphery but not focused to desired lung regions. A new research effort by German researchers was designed to provide a potentially new technology to close this gap and to offer potentially more gentle treatment options for patients suffering from severe lung diseases such as lung cancer. At first glance it might seem weird that lung cancer, which very often is caused by inhaling carcinogenic particles found in polluted air and tobacco smoke, can be treated by just inhaling some more particles. Although aerosol therapy does work to some degree (" Aerosol Therapy for Malignancy Involving the Lungs"), as with all other current cancer drug therapies there are side effects caused by the administered drugs' damage to healthy tissue.
"Being able to target specific areas in the lung with cancer drug aerosols would avoid potential drug-related site effects in healthy tissue "Dr. Carsten Rudolph explains,"We were able to demonstrate theoretically by computer-aided simulation and for the first time experimentally in mice, that targeted aerosol delivery to the lung can be achieved with aerosol droplets comprising superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs), so-called nanomagnetosols, in combination with a target-directed magnetic gradient field."
Rudolph, together with colleagues from various universities in Munich and Berlin, and other institutions across Germany, shows that with their technique, higher doses of drugs can be delivered to the cancerous region without increasing side effects ("Targeted delivery of magnetic aerosol droplets to the lung").