Nanobiology is the intersection of nanotechnology and biology, focusing on the study and manipulation of biological molecules at the nanoscale (1 nm to 100 nm). It encompasses understanding the relationship between molecular structure and function, designing new biomolecules, and addressing biological challenges using nanotechnology. Historical milestones in nanotechnology, such as the development of scanning tunneling and atomic force microscopes, have paved the way for advancements in this field.
Nanobiology is the intersection of nanotechnology and biology, focusing on the study and manipulation of biological molecules at the nanoscale (1 nm to 100 nm). It encompasses understanding the relationship between molecular structure and function, designing new biomolecules, and addressing biological challenges using nanotechnology. Historical milestones in nanotechnology, such as the development of scanning tunneling and atomic force microscopes, have paved the way for advancements in this field.
Nanobiology is the intersection of nanotechnology and biology, focusing on the study and manipulation of biological molecules at the nanoscale (1 nm to 100 nm). It encompasses understanding the relationship between molecular structure and function, designing new biomolecules, and addressing biological challenges using nanotechnology. Historical milestones in nanotechnology, such as the development of scanning tunneling and atomic force microscopes, have paved the way for advancements in this field.
Nanobiology is the intersection of nanotechnology and biology, focusing on the study and manipulation of biological molecules at the nanoscale (1 nm to 100 nm). It encompasses understanding the relationship between molecular structure and function, designing new biomolecules, and addressing biological challenges using nanotechnology. Historical milestones in nanotechnology, such as the development of scanning tunneling and atomic force microscopes, have paved the way for advancements in this field.
1nm = 0.001μm = 0.000001mm = 0.000000001m ▪ Biology ▪ Nanobiology (Bionanoscience, Bionanotechnology, Nanobiotechnology) refers to the intersection of nanotechnology and biology. 3 ◼ These terms are often used interchangeably. ◼ Bionanotechnology primarily involves learning from the mechanisms of biological "machines" to guide and enhance nanotechnological developments. ◼ Nanobiotechnology uses nanotechnology to develop devices that help in studying biological systems. From “mm” to “m”
◼ Objects: Tissues and
Organs
◼ Subjects: Anatomy, Physiology, Surgery, etc.
5 From “mm” to “m”
6 From “mm” to “m”
7 From “0.1 μm” to “mm”
Human oocyte: 120-150 μm
Human sperm: 2-4 μm
8 From “0.1 μm” to “mm”
◼ Objects: Cells
◼ Subjects: Cell Biology, Biochemistry, etc.
9 From “0.1μm” to “mm” Mammalian cell: ~10-100 μm
Nucleus: ~6 μm
Golgi apparatus: Large, variable
Mitochondria: ~0.5-10 μm, variable …… 10 From “1nm” to “100nm”
◼ The inner life of the cell
(BioVisions, Harvard University)
11 From “0.1nm” to “1nm”
12 2. Objects of Nanobiology
( At 1 nm to 100 nm scale) Biomacromolecules Biomolecular complexes Subcellular organelles Organic molecules
13 3. Content of Nanobiology ( At 1 nm to 100 nm scale) 1) Understanding the Relationship: Study how the structure of biological molecules relates to their functions. 2) Designing New Biomolecules: Create new biomolecules with specific functions or new structures. 3) Manipulating Molecules: Handle, control, and assess biological molecules. ➔ Use the knowledge from the above three areas to address challenges in biology. 14 Section 2：Development of Nanotechnology
15 1. Key Historical Milestones
◼ "There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom" by physicist Richard Feynman at an American Physical Society meeting at Caltech on December 29, 1959.
16 ◼ The principles of physics, as far as I can see, do not speak against the possibility of maneuvering things atom by atom. It is not an attempt to violate any laws; it is something, in principle, that can be done; but in practice, it has not been done because we are too big. Richard Feynman
17 ◼ The problems of chemistry and biology can be greatly helped if our ability to see what we are doing, and to do things on an atomic level, is ultimately developed— a development which I think cannot be avoided. Richard Feynman
18 Chemistry = Nanotechnology?
◼ Chemistry typically involves combining atoms to create a specific molecule at the nanometer scale. ◼ Chemistry involves reactions on a large/bulk scale rather than controlling it atom by atom. Top-down and bottom-up
◼ Top-down and bottom-up are two
approaches for the manufacture of products. ◼ Top-down approaches seek to create nanoscale devices by using larger, externally controlled ones to direct their assembly.
Lithography ◼ Bottom-up approaches use smaller (usually molecular) components built up into more complex assemblies. ◼ In 1974, the term “Nano technology” was first defined by Norio Taniguchi.
"'Nano-technology' mainly consists of the processing,
separation, consolidation, and deformation of materials by one atom or one molecule."
23 ◼ In 1980s, Dr. K. Eric Drexler promoted the significance of Nanotechnology.
“The Coming Era of Nanotechnology”
“Nanosystems: Molecular Machinery, Manufacturing, and Computation” 24 Mechanosynthesis
◼ Constructing molecules by forcibly
pressing atoms together into the desired molecular shapes. ◼ Core： a nano-assembler (nanomachine) comprising an arm and a computer that could be programmed to build more molecules or nanomachines.
25 Drexler’s Dream Nanomachines
◼ Parallel with macroscopic machinery and
engineering (e.g., bearings, motors, scissors.) Nobel Prize in Physics 1986
◼ A scanning tunneling microscope (STM) is
a powerful instrument for imaging surfaces at the atomic level, developed in 1981 by Gerd Binnig and Heinrich Rohrer (at IBM Zürich).
Single-walled carbon nanotube 27
◼ Atomic force microscope (AFM) is a high- resolution type of scanning probe microscopy, invented by Gerd Binnig, Calvin Quate and Christoph Gerber in 1986.
Bacteriorhodopsin in the cell membrane
28 ◼ In 1989, Don Eigler and Erhard Schweizer at IBM's Almaden Research Center arranged 35 xenon atoms to form the IBM logo using STM. This precise manipulation of individual atoms marked a significant advancement in the practical application of nanotechnology. Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1996
◼ A fullerene-C60 is a spherical molecule with the formula C60, prepared by Harold Kroto, James Heath, Sean O'Brien, Robert Curl and Richard Smalley at Rice University in 1985. 30 Carbon Nanotube
◼ Most literature attributes the discovery of hollow, nanometer size carbon tubes to Sumio Iijima of NEC in 1991.
31 Nobel Prize in Physics 2010
Graphene is a one-atom-thick planar sheet of sp2-
bonded carbon atoms that are densely packed in a honeycomb crystal lattice. 32 Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2016
◼ The Prize was awarded jointly to Jean-Pierre
Sauvage, Sir J. Fraser Stoddart and Bernard L. Feringa “for the design and synthesis of molecular machines”. ◼ A molecular-level machine can be defined as “an assembly of a distinct number of molecular components that are designed to perform machinelike movements (output) as a result of an appropriate external stimulation (input)”. ◼ A machine requires a supply of energy for its operation, and can be driven by suitable energy sources. Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2023
◼ Moungi G. Bawendi, Louis E. Brus and
Aleksey Yekimov are awarded for the discovery and development of quantum dots. Section 3: Macroscopic Machinery to Nanobiology
Nobody has yet built artificial non-biological nano-
robots: they remain a hypothetical concept. 44 ◼ How HIV infects a cell and replicates itself using reverse transcriptase and the host‘s cellular machinery (HHMI video)
on how things work, chemistry to engineer devices and physics to model the system. Bio-Nanotechnology ◼ Most bio-macromolecules work as machines at the nanoscale level. ◼ We can extend the function of these machines by modifying existing biomolecular nanomachines or designing entirely new ones.
49 Section 4: The Unfamiliar World of Nanobiology
50 1. Negligible Gravity / Inertia
◼ How much does one molecule weigh?
M * 9.8N/kg = G If M is H2O, G of one water molecule is 18 * 10-3 * 9.8 / (6.02 * 1023) = 2.9 * 10-25 N = 2.9 * 10-13 pN If M is a 30kd protein, G = 4.8 * 10-10 pN M is a E. Coli (pg), G = 1.0 * 10-2 pN 51 Forces at Biological Nanoscale
52 ◼ Cars vs. E. Coli (accident-free)
The inertia of a microscopic object—a property of matter that
describes its resistance to changes in motion—can often be considered negligible given the small mass and forces involved. 53 2. Significant Thermal Motion
◼ Bionanomachines operate in a chaotic
environment, hit continually by water molecules. ◼ Diffusive motion is remarkably fast (less than seconds).
54 3. Atomic Granularity
◼ Nanoscale objects are built of discrete
combinations of atoms that interact through specific atom-atom interactions.
55 ◼ No smoothly graded range of sizes. ◼ No smooth transition from one state to the next. A Biological Machinery Pump
◼ Bacteriorhodopsin adopts several
discrete states to facilitate the transport of proton.
57 4. A Watery Realm
◼ Water molecules shape the
structure and function of a biological molecule (e.g. protein folding in water). ◼ Hydrophobic effect dominates the properties and interactions of nanomachines. ◼ Limitation? 58 5. World of Evolution
◼ Mutation is a driving force of life.
◼ Thousands of bionanomachines have been selected and perfected by evolutionary optimization to perform nanoscale tasks. Reverse Transcriptase of HIV
Human Immunodeficiency Virus
60 Halobacteria & Bacteriorhodopsin
61 ◼ Limitation: evolution places strong constraints on the form that biological molecules adopt, strongly favoring modification over innovation. References
