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Welcome to Bionanotechnology
Welcome to Bionanotechnology From Theory to Practice
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2020 was a good year for bionanotechnology, a field that helped us design mRNA vaccines and get us through the pandemic.
It is difficult to pinpoint the exact moment the field emerged; like with many other interdisciplinary fields, disciplines merged together providing several important points in time for the field’s evolution. An important moment was the preparation of stable gold nanoparticle DNA hybrids that can be used as colorimetric sensors and design of first liposomal drug carriers in 1990’s. These developments went hand in hand with the sequencing of the human genome, advances in protein expression and labelling, introduction of superresolution fluorescent microscopy and a deeper understanding of the world on a nanoscale.
As we progressed over the last 30 years, we have learned that bio-nano hybrids are all around us. Venus flower basket sponge builds intricate silica scaffolds by combining layers of silica nanoparticles with proteins, while water-repelling properties of lotus plants stem from nanosized pillars of biopolymers within the leaf. Who would have thought that the beautiful insect colours are the result of the interaction between sunlight with the intricate nanostructures within their wings and shells? We are only just starting to grasp some of the nanostructural elements in Nature, and as we learn more about them, they will help us design better materials and provide new solutions for the challenges ahead. After all, we have a planet to take care of and environmental challenges to address.
Bionanotechnology will not solve all the problems alone, but it can help us understand how can we combine man-made structures with biomolecules and use nature-inspired design to obtain drug-delivery systems, imaging agents for healthcare, new generation of solar cells and batteries for energy, and biocompatible materials and technologies to deal with pollution, and increased demands for food product. However, maybe the most important lesson we can learn from the bionanotechnology is that the best solutions are those that cross disciplines and do not shy away from demanding questions and seemingly unrelated answers. Within this course we will ask those questions, discuss the answers, and have lots of fun in the process.
