Functionalised Inorganic Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications

Etienne Duguet (1) , Mona Tréguer-Delapierre (1) , Marie-Hélène Delville (1)

1 ICMCB - Institut de Chimie de la Matière Condensée de Bordeaux

The recent development of effective and reproducible techniques has made it possible to synthesise stable aqueous dispersions of individual particles with sizes that can be accurately adjusted from a few nanometers to a few tens of nanometers. These objects are thus small enough to circulate within the human body without causing a risk of embolus, because the narrowest capillaries (those in the lungs) have a minimal diameter of 5 μm. Such particles can also escape from the blood compartment through windows of diameter around 100nm in certain epithelia with increased permeability, such as those located in tumours and centres of infection, thus favouring their accumulation in precisely these tissues. Finally, the smallest particles can enter cells and their different compartments. Research scientists and doctors thus have new tools at their disposal for understanding biological processes, improving medical diagnoses, and even developing new therapeutic strategies. Liposomes and particles made from polymers were discussed in some detail in volume II of this series [2], especially with regard to drug targeting. In the present chapter, we shall be concerned with inorganic nanoparticles, such as metal chalcogenides and oxides, and noble metals, whose intrinsic magnetic or optical properties are complementary to the properties of polymers. They are soon expected to play a key role in biological tagging, enhancing contrast in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and the hyperthermal treatment of many pathologies, such as cancers. While the properties of the particle core motivate the choice of a specific type of nanoparticle, surface properties turn out to be equally fundamental. Indeed, it is the surface along with whatever molecular adaptations can be created on it that provides control over the interactions between the particles (single or clustered objects) and the interactions with biological molecules, macromolecules, and cells. Surface functionalisation plays an essential part here, and effective applications of these new diagnostic and/or therapeutic tools will largely be due to progress in this field.

Domaines: Matériaux

Etienne Duguet, Mona Tréguer-Delapierre, Marie-Hélène Delville. Functionalised Inorganic Nanoparticles for Biomedical Applications. Patrick Boisseau; Philippe Houdy; Marcel Lahmani. Nanoscience, Springer, pp.129-170, 2009, 978-3-540-88632-7. ⟨10.1007/978-3-540-88633-4_4⟩. ⟨hal-04160407⟩