Abstract
Nanotechnology refers to the branch of science and engineering dedicated to materials, having dimensions in the order of 100th of nm or less. The term being new, but has been widely used for the development of more efficient technology. In recent years, nanotechnology has been embraced by industrial sectors due to its applications in the field of electronic storage systems, biotechnology, magnetic separation and pre concentration of target analytes, targeted drug delivery and vehicles for gene and drug delivery. Consequently, with wide range of applications available, these particles have potential to make a significant impact to the society. In general, nanoparticles used in the field of biotechnology range in particle size between 10 and 500 nm, seldom exceeding 700 nm. The nanosize of these particles allows various communications with biomolecules on the cell surfaces and within the cells in way that can be decoded and designated to various biochemical and physiochemical properties of these cells. Similarly, its potential application in drug delivery system and noninvasive imaging offered various advantages over conventional pharmaceutical agents. More specific targeting systems are designed to recognize the targeted cells such as cancer cells. This can be achieved by conjugating the nanoparticle with an appropriate ligand, which has a specific binding activity with respect to the target cells. In addition, nanoparticles provide a platform to attach multiple copies of therapeutic substance on it and hence increase the concentration of therapeutic and diagnostic substances at the pathological site. Also, the concentration and dynamics of the active molecule can be varied by controlling the particle size of nanoparticles (>3–5 nm).
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