Nanoswimmers Based on Capped Janus Nanospheres

Petteri Piskunen, Martina Huusela, Veikko Linko*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalReview Articlepeer-review

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Abstract

Nanoswimmers are synthetic nanoscale objects that convert the available surrounding free energy to a directed motion. For example, bacteria with various flagella types serve as textbook examples of the minuscule swimmers found in nature. Along these lines, a plethora of artificial hybrid and non-hybrid nanoswimmers have been introduced, and they could find many uses, e.g., for targeted drug delivery systems (TDDSs) and controlled drug treatments. Here, we discuss a certain class of nanoparticles, i.e., functional, capped Janus nanospheres that can be employed as nanoswimmers, their subclasses and properties, as well as their various implementations. A brief outlook is given on different fabrication and synthesis methods, as well as on the diverse compositions used to prepare nanoswimmers, with a focus on the particle types and materials suitable for biomedical applications. Several recent studies have shown remarkable success in achieving temporally and spatially controlled drug delivery in vitro using Janus-particle-based TDDSs. We believe that this review will serve as a concise introductory synopsis for the interested readers. Therefore, we hope that it will deepen the general understanding of nanoparticle behavior in biological matrices.

Original languageEnglish
Article number4442
JournalMaterials
Volume15
Issue number13
Early online date24 Jun 2022
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jul 2022
MoE publication typeA2 Review article, Literature review, Systematic review

Keywords

  • biohybrids
  • biomedicine
  • Janus particles
  • nanofabrication
  • nanospheres
  • nanoswimmers
  • targeted delivery

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