Nanosphere

The diffraction mechanism of a photonic crystal composed of nanospheres.

Nanospheres are a type or class of nanostructure consisting of a solid core and matrix made from a polymeric material—both organic and inorganic are common. They are not necessarily spherical in shape. In a nanoengineering context, they are generally divided into two categories: magnetic nanospherers and immune nanospheres, and can range from 10 to 200 nm in size.

Structure

Magnetic nanospheres are mostly inorganic and can be manipulated easily using a magnetic field. For their mass, they have very high surface area and saturation magnetisation. This means they have the potential to be used in a variety of ways, including: ion exchange separation, drug delivery, targeted gene therapy, and magnetic resonance imaging. They may be hollow and filled with molecules—such as anti-cancer drugs—for delivery, through a needle or otherwise, into the body. This delivery method can avoid much more invasive surgery and pores in the nanospheres allow them to effectively deliver cells or act as a microreactor.

Immune nanospheres are designed to induce an immune response—both adaptive and innate—by delivering specific nucleotides, such as CpG oligodeoxynucleotide, to the body. They may be designed to have enhanced dispersity and solubility.

In nature

Nanospheres are found in the natural world, such as in the amelogenin proteins found in enamel in teeth and in photonic crystals found in some plants—edelweiss, for example.

References

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