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Bionanotechnology and Nanobiotechnology: Biomimetics or Engineering Nature?

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A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991). This special issue belongs to the section "Biology and Medicines".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2021) | Viewed by 20083

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Dimitrios Kontziampasis

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Guest Editor

School of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Biological Sciences, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK
Interests: surface modification; plasma nanoscience; nanobiotechnology; bionanotechnology; cryoEM; time-resolved microscopy; nanofabrication; AFM; tissue engineering; cell–surface interactions; foams; coatings; biomimetics

Dr. Maria Kitsara

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Guest Editor

Institut de Biologie Paris-Seine (IBPS), Sorbonne Université, 75005 Paris, France
Interests: biomaterials; polymeric scaffolds; tissue engineering; regenerative medicine; biomimetics; micro and nanofabrication; electrospinning; microfluidics; biosensors; organ on a chip

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the past few years, the fields of bionanotechnology (i.e., the use of biological species in the field of nanotechnology) and nanobiotechnology (i.e., the use of nanotechnology in aiding, controlling, and promoting desired biological functions) have emerged and separated from synthetic biology and bioengineering and are now starting to be established as independent fields. The huge interest can be exemplified by various recent Nobel Prizes in Chemistry. For bionanotechnology, a Nobel Prize for design and synthesis of molecular machines (2016) was awarded, while for nanobiotechnology, there was an award for the directed evolution of enzymes (2018). Even a characterization tool that could give high resolution information to allow us to understand the underlying mechanisms of proteins and cells was recently awarded with a Nobel Prize in cryogenic electron microscopy (2017). It is self-evident that these fields will become dominant in the next few years.

This Special Issue will bring together the latest advances in the fields of bionanotechnology and nanobiotechnology. The issue aims to highlight the challenges and obstacles underpinning these newly established fields. By understanding and identifying the hurdles and bottlenecks, it will deepen our fundamental understanding regarding physical, chemical, and biological phenomena that set the foundations of the aforementioned complex processes. Examples are cell interaction with surfaces, nanopatterns and nanoparticles, electrical and optical effects (i.e., electrical stimulation, energy storage, absorption, luminescence, and fluorescence), DNA computing, organ and tissue engineering, and biological additive manufacturing, to name a few.

The ultimate goal of this Special Issue is to provide a state-of-the-art handbook as well as a guidance and serve as reference for researchers who are interested in the fields of nanobiotechnology and bionanotechnology. This will clarify and underpin these two fields and additionally steer future research directions as well as aid the further development of these fields. The interconnected applications are endless and extend from energy storage to targeted drug delivery, and artificial organ development to agriculture.

We invite investigators to contribute articles of original research, as well as review articles. An indicative but not exclusive list of topics is as follows:

Nanobiotechnology and bionanotechnology;
Nanobioengineering, nanobioprinting;
Nanofabricated scaffolds;
Nanobiomaterials and bionanomaterials;
Biomimetics;
Nanomedicine and nanotherapeutics;
Proteins as molecular machines and nanorobots;
Microbe and cell factories;
DNA origami;
Nanotechnology for agriculture, forestry and food;
Nanoelectromechanical and nanofluidic systems for biology;
Characterisation tools and techniques for nanobiotechnology and bionanotechnology (e.g., cryoEM, AFM, super resolution microscopy).

Dr. Dimitrios Kontziampasis
Dr. Maria Kitsara
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nanomaterials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Nanobiotechnology
Bionanotechnology
Biomimetics
Nanofibrous scaffolds
Nanoparticles
Bioprinting
Tissue engineering
Bioengineering
Organ on a chip
Cryogenic electron microscopy

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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9 pages, 6511 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Formation of Nanostructure during Replication of a Hierarchical Plant Surface

by Dora Kroisová, Štěpánka Dvořáčková and Petr Kůsa

Nanomaterials 2021, 11(11), 2811; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11112811 - 23 Oct 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1328

Abstract

Plant and animal surfaces have become a model for preparing special synthetic surfaces with low wettability, reflectivity, or antibacterial properties. Processes that lead to the creation of replicas of natural character use two-step imprinting methods. This article describes a technique of synthetic polymer surface preparation by the process of two-stage imprinting. The laboratory-prepared structure copies the original natural pattern at the micrometer and sub-micrometer levels, supplemented by a new substructure. The new substructure identified by the scanning electron microscope is created at the nanometer level during the technological process. The nanostructure is formed only under the conditions that a hierarchical structure forms the surface of the natural replicated pattern, the replication mold is from a soft elastomeric material, and the material for producing the synthetic surface is a polymer capable of crystallizing. A new nanometer substructure formation occurs when the polymer cools to standard laboratory temperature and atmospheric pressure. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionanotechnology and Nanobiotechnology: Biomimetics or Engineering Nature?)

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13 pages, 2554 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Aptamer Functionalized Lipid Multilayer Gratings for Label-Free Analyte Detection

by Plengchart Prommapan, Nermina Brljak, Troy W. Lowry, David Van Winkle and Steven Lenhert

Nanomaterials 2020, 10(12), 2433; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10122433 - 5 Dec 2020

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2557

Abstract

Lipid multilayer gratings are promising optical biosensor elements that are capable of transducing analyte binding events into changes in an optical signal. Unlike solid state transducers, reagents related to molecular recognition and signal amplification can be incorporated into the lipid grating ink volume prior to fabrication. Here we describe a strategy for functionalizing lipid multilayer gratings with a DNA aptamer for the protein thrombin that allows label-free analyte detection. A double cholesterol-tagged, double-stranded DNA linker was used to attach the aptamer to the lipid gratings. This approach was found to be sufficient for binding fluorescently labeled thrombin to lipid multilayers with micrometer-scale thickness. In order to achieve label-free detection with the sub-100 nm-thick lipid multilayer grating lines, the binding affinity was improved by varying the lipid composition. A colorimetric image analysis of the light diffracted from the gratings using a color camera was then used to identify the grating nanostructures that lead to an optimal signal. Lipid composition and multilayer thickness were found to be critical parameters for the signal transduction from the aptamer functionalized lipid multilayer gratings. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionanotechnology and Nanobiotechnology: Biomimetics or Engineering Nature?)

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Review

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15 pages, 1670 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Carbon Nanomaterials Modified Biomimetic Dental Implants for Diabetic Patients

by Renjini Vijay, Jayanti Mendhi, Karthika Prasad, Yin Xiao, Jennifer MacLeod, Kostya (Ken) Ostrikov and Yinghong Zhou

Nanomaterials 2021, 11(11), 2977; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11112977 - 5 Nov 2021

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 3562

Abstract

Dental implants are used broadly in dental clinics as the most natural-looking restoration option for replacing missing or highly diseased teeth. However, dental implant failure is a crucial issue for diabetic patients in need of dentition restoration, particularly when a lack of osseointegration and immunoregulatory incompetency occur during the healing phase, resulting in infection and fibrous encapsulation. Bio-inspired or biomimetic materials, which can mimic the characteristics of natural elements, are being investigated for use in the implant industry. This review discusses different biomimetic dental implants in terms of structural changes that enable antibacterial properties, drug delivery, immunomodulation, and osseointegration. We subsequently summarize the modification of dental implants for diabetes patients utilizing carbon nanomaterials, which have been recently found to improve the characteristics of biomimetic dental implants, including through antibacterial and anti-inflammatory capabilities, and by offering drug delivery properties that are essential for the success of dental implants. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionanotechnology and Nanobiotechnology: Biomimetics or Engineering Nature?)

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19 pages, 4408 KiB

Open AccessReview

Liquid Crystal Elastomers for Biological Applications

by Mariam Hussain, Ethan I. L. Jull, Richard J. Mandle, Thomas Raistrick, Peter J. Hine and Helen F. Gleeson

Nanomaterials 2021, 11(3), 813; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano11030813 - 22 Mar 2021

Cited by 38 | Viewed by 6470

Abstract

The term liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) describes a class of materials that combine the elastic entropy behaviour associated with conventional elastomers with the stimuli responsive properties of anisotropic liquid crystals. LCEs consequently exhibit attributes of both elastomers and liquid crystals, but additionally have unique properties not found in either. Recent developments in LCE synthesis, as well as the understanding of the behaviour of liquid crystal elastomers—namely their mechanical, optical and responsive properties—is of significant relevance to biology and biomedicine. LCEs are abundant in nature, highlighting the potential use of LCEs in biomimetics. Their exceptional tensile properties and biocompatibility have led to research exploring their applications in artificial tissue, biological sensors and cell scaffolds by exploiting their actuation and shock absorption properties. There has also been significant recent interest in using LCEs as a model for morphogenesis. This review provides an overview of some aspects of LCEs which are of relevance in different branches of biology and biomedicine, as well as discussing how recent LCE advances could impact future applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionanotechnology and Nanobiotechnology: Biomimetics or Engineering Nature?)

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52 pages, 11577 KiB

Open AccessReview

From Nanobiotechnology, Positively Charged Biomimetic Dendrimers as Novel Antibacterial Agents: A Review

by Silvana Alfei and Anna Maria Schito

Nanomaterials 2020, 10(10), 2022; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano10102022 - 14 Oct 2020

Cited by 54 | Viewed by 3527

Abstract

The alarming increase in antimicrobial resistance, based on the built-in abilities of bacteria to nullify the activity of current antibiotics, leaves a growing number of bacterial infections untreatable. An appealing approach, advanced in recent decades, concerns the development of novel agents able to interact with the external layers of bacteria, causing irreparable damage. Regarding this, some natural cationic antimicrobial peptides (CAMPs) have been reconsidered, and synthetic cationic polymers, mimicking CAMPs and able to kill bacteria by non-specific detrimental interaction with the negative bacterial membranes, have been proposed as promising solutions. Lately, also dendrimers were considered suitable macromolecules for the preparation of more advanced cationic biomimetic nanoparticles, able to harmonize the typical properties of dendrimers, including nanosize, mono-dispersion, long-term stability, high functionality, and the non-specific mechanism of action of CAMPs. Although cationic dendrimers are extensively applied in nanomedicine for drug or gene delivery, their application as antimicrobial agents is still in its infancy. The state of the art of their potential applications in this important field has therefore been reviewed here, with particular attention to the innovative case studies in the literature including also amino acid-modified polyester-based dendrimers, practically unexplored as membrane-active antimicrobials and able to kill bacteria on contact. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Bionanotechnology and Nanobiotechnology: Biomimetics or Engineering Nature?)

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