Nanoparticles in Medicine: Therapeutic Applications and Developments

TLDR

Nanotechnology manipulates matter at the 1–100 nm scale, and its medical application—nanomedicine—leverages the unique physicochemical properties of nanomaterials, such as ultra‑small size, high surface‑area‑to‑mass ratio, and reactivity, to develop novel therapeutic and diagnostic modalities. The purpose is to use these nanomaterial properties to overcome limitations of traditional therapeutic and diagnostic agents. Nanomedicine achieves this by engineering nanomaterials at the 1–100 nm scale to harness their ultra‑small size, high surface‑area‑to‑mass ratio.

Abstract

Nanotechnology is the understanding and control of matter generally in the 1–100 nm dimension range. The application of nanotechnology to medicine, known as nanomedicine, concerns the use of precisely engineered materials at this length scale to develop novel therapeutic and diagnostic modalities.1,2 Nanomaterials have unique physicochemical properties, such as ultra small size, large surface area to mass ratio, and high reactivity, which are different from bulk materials of the same composition. These properties can be used to overcome some of the limitations found in traditional therapeutic and diagnostic agents. Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics (2008); 83, 5, 761–769. doi:10.1038/sj.clpt.6100400