NANOMEDICINE
1. Introduction
2. State of the Art nanomedicine (from the nanomedicine roadmap 2020)
Nanomedicine has emerged as a novel field which involves the application of nanotechnology to human health. Various therapeutic and diagnostic modalities have been developed which can potentially revolutionize disease diagnostic and treatment. The knowhow in nanotechnology offers new ways to create better laboratory diagnostic tools for non-invasive screening.
2.1 Regenerative Medicine A really broad definition of Regenerative Medicine includes the repair, replacement, or regeneration of damaged tissues or organs with a combination of several technological approaches, which can be roughly devided into two subareas: smart biomaterials and advanced cell therapy. Smart Biomaterials
Accurate and early diagnosis, will facilitate timely clinical intervention and can mitigate patient risk and disease progression. The conventional oral and parental routes of drug administration have several disadvantages owing to altered pharmacokinetic parameters and wide spread distribution. Targeted delivery of drugs, nucleic acids and other molecules using nanoparticles are the focus of current research and development. The goal of tissue engineering or regenerative medicine is the improvement, repair, or replacement of tissue and organ function. The ultimate goal is to enable the body to heal itself by introducing and engineered scaffold that the body recognizes as own. The challenges are not minor. If nanotechnology is to be translated into meaningful benefits for patients, innovation in the laboratory must be supported by the pillars of evidence based medicine and predictable regulatory pathways.
Since 2006, research on biomaterials has fostered many steps forward and significant changes on the tissue regeneration approach. Major attention has been given to the importance of biomaterial mode of action. Research efforts have moved from the development of inert polymers which mimic the biomechanical properties of native tissue to bioactive materials which promote the tissue self healing. The development of smart biomaterial can be divided into two phases: discovery and process optimization. In the discovery phase, the main issue is product characterization. 3D functional assays and devices to measure intracellular signals are useful tools in this phase. The process optimization phase involves the translation of prototype into product assuring scalability, quality, and safety of the proposed treatment.
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