Nanotechnology is no longer a science bound to the world of science fiction. Radical breakthroughs in particle construction and function mean that they are real and ready for use.
Often, the focus lies in the initiatives in the world of healthcare, electronics, energy generation and even the military. There is always that consumer market that cannot be readily ignored.…
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The terms nanotechnology and nanomaterials are popping up more often in the news, in research papers and even on the web. Despite that, there is still a relative lack of awareness regarding nanomaterials.
Before understanding the concept of nanomaterials, there is need to understand what the general concept of nanotechnology is all about.
The term ‘nanotechnology’ emerged in 1974. At the time, it was defined as consisting of the processing of separation, consolidation, and deformation of materials by one atom or by one molecule.
Diseases such as cancer, Parkinson’s disease, and HIV/Aids, and even inherited disorders such as cystic fibrosis and hemochromatosis all have one thing in common; they have no known cures. However, with gene therapy, this may soon change. DNA Nanotechnology is used in gene therapy in a process whose purpose is to treat or prevent a disease using genes.
More specifically, the process delivers therapeutic nucleic acid polymers into the cells of a patient. Indeed, gene therapy has evolved immensely over the years. In 2016 for example, scientists made significant progress using gene therapy for increasing the resistance of uninfected cells to HIV/Aids and even “snipping out” infected cells.
