Nanotechnology Crucial in Fighting Infectious Disease

Summary posted by Meridian on 4/3/2009
Source: The Lancet
Author: Kelly Morris

The article, in the April 2009 The Lancent Infectious Diseases, highlights research being conducted using nanotechnology to prevent, diagnose and treat infectious diseases. Saying that progress in this field is moving at an exponential pace, the author quotes Karin Forsberg-Nilsson, chair of the EuroNanoMed Network Steering Committee, as urging industrial players to collaborate more closely with scientists and clinicians, to shorten the delay from patents to patients. Forsberg-Nilsson says that such cross-disciplinary networks are essential and "an advantage to further the field beyond hype to implementation." The article details some of the areas where nanomedicine is having a profound impact on infectious disease, from lab-on-a-chip technology, which should reach the market within a few years, to nanotechnology-based microbicides against HIV, which are now in early clinical trials. Nanotechnology-based vaccines for hepatitis B, tuberculosis, and HIV are also in the works, as are antibacterial coatings for surfaces and materials. Blood-purification devices, also based on nanotechnology, are in the animal testing phase and will move to clinical trials soon. These devices could be used to treat patients with septic shock. Clinical trials are expected to start later this year for using nanotechnology to develop more potent immune cells that can help fight HIV. The article says safety issues are a concern when it comes to nanotechnology and medicine, but, according to Christine Peterson, vice president of the Foresight Institute, "... nanotech will be like biotech with respect to ethical or toxicity issues: the public is more tolerant regarding medical uses than for uses in less-critical applications...in the longer term, nanotechnology-based treatments are the most promising pathway for tackling infectious diseases." The article may be viewed online at the link below.

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our team contact us site map	Nanotechnology Crucial in Fighting Infectious Disease Summary posted by Meridian on 4/3/2009 Source: The Lancet Author: Kelly Morris The article, in the April 2009 The Lancent Infectious Diseases, highlights research being conducted using nanotechnology to prevent, diagnose and treat infectious diseases. Saying that progress in this field is moving at an exponential pace, the author quotes Karin Forsberg-Nilsson, chair of the EuroNanoMed Network Steering Committee, as urging industrial players to collaborate more closely with scientists and clinicians, to shorten the delay from patents to patients. Forsberg-Nilsson says that such cross-disciplinary networks are essential and "an advantage to further the field beyond hype to implementation." The article details some of the areas where nanomedicine is having a profound impact on infectious disease, from lab-on-a-chip technology, which should reach the market within a few years, to nanotechnology-based microbicides against HIV, which are now in early clinical trials. Nanotechnology-based vaccines for hepatitis B, tuberculosis, and HIV are also in the works, as are antibacterial coatings for surfaces and materials. Blood-purification devices, also based on nanotechnology, are in the animal testing phase and will move to clinical trials soon. These devices could be used to treat patients with septic shock. Clinical trials are expected to start later this year for using nanotechnology to develop more potent immune cells that can help fight HIV. The article says safety issues are a concern when it comes to nanotechnology and medicine, but, according to Christine Peterson, vice president of the Foresight Institute, "... nanotech will be like biotech with respect to ethical or toxicity issues: the public is more tolerant regarding medical uses than for uses in less-critical applications...in the longer term, nanotechnology-based treatments are the most promising pathway for tackling infectious diseases." The article may be viewed online at the link below. The original article may still be available at www.thelancet.com/journals/laninf/article/PIIS1473-3099(09)70100-8/full... As tagged by Meridian Institute: Health And Medical: Diagnostics, Devices, Diseases Implications: Human Enhancement, Human Health Risks, Governance, Environmental Risks, Economic Competitiveness, Ethics Nanomaterials: Carbon Nanoparticle, Metal Nanoparticle, Naturally Occurring Regions: Europe Stakeholders: Government, Industry, NGO, Academia, International Institutions Related Forums: Health and Medical Human Health Risks and Worker Safety Environmental Risks Economic Competitiveness Governance Ethics print format	NDN Home Subscribe Manage Subscription Search News Archives Understanding Public Debate on Nanotechnologies: Options for Framing Public Policy -- The Innovation Society (2/8/2010) The Governance and Ethics Unit of the Directorate General for Research (DG Research) of the European Commission (EC) has published an overview paper on options for framing public policy on nanotechnologies. [More] UN Patent Filings Dropped for 1st Time Since 1978 -- ABC news (2/8/2010) The United Nations World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO), an entity through which a company can, for a fee, file a request for patent protection in any or all of the 142 countries that have subscribed to the U.N.'s Patent Cooperation Treaty, reported that the number of international patent filings dropped last year for the first time since 1978. [More] TECHNOLOGY: Science Panel Probes Renewable Energy's Current Use of China's Rare Metals -- Environment & Energy Daily (2/8/2010) A United States House of Representatives Science and Technology subcommittee this week will hold a hearing on rare earth mineral production and the resource's role in the growing clean energy industry. [More] Nanofood for Thought -- Nature Nanotechnology (2/5/2010) This editorial, in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, is in response to the recent report, "Nanotechnologies and Food", released in January by the House of Lords Science and Technology Committee, United Kingdom, that criticized the food industry for failing to be transparent about its research into the uses of nanotechnologies and nanomaterials. [More] More News... Learn how to include these headlines on your own website by clicking here. Please email us if you require text-only versions of the daily emails.