Nanoparticles are increasingly found in drug development. Researchers are using them in designing treatments for tumors, infections, and brain diseases, as well as for imaging techniques that enhance visualization of molecular-scale events in brain tissue and culture dishes. But so far, says biochemist Michael Sailor of the University of California-San Diego, the technology for designing nanoparticles “is kind of like where we were when we were building Model T cars.”
Creating nanoparticles—which are usually between 1 and 100 nanometers long and made from a variety of materials—and putting them to work within complex biological systems can be quite a challenge and it’s not something scientists, especially newbies, do alone. Rather, the field of medical nanotechnology requires expertise from material scientists, engineers, and biologists, says Sailor. There are a number of parameters to play with. For example, researchers might see that they can alter their particles’ shapes and sizes through simple ...
