Hybrid nanomaterials for biomedical applications

Abstract

Nanotechnology has established itself as a field aimed at providing new solutions to current problems. Reducing the size to the nanometric scale confers new properties to materials, enabling a wide range of applications. Among these materials, metallic and metal oxide nanoparticles stand out in the field of nanomedicine due to their applications when combined to form hybrid nanomaterials. For example, molybdenum nanoparticles are presented as ideal targets in an alternative methodology to produce the radioisotope technetium-99, which is facing a global crisis in its manufacture. In addition, iron oxide nanoparticles can act as nanocarriers for the internalization of proteins that can induce macrophage polarization. These cells have an active role in regeneration processes and the control on macrophage polarization towards a pro-inflammatory or anti-inflammatory stage would be useful to promote tissue regeneration in implants or wound healing.