Advances in Nanomedicine for the Delivery of Therapeutic Nucleic Acids addresses several issues related to safe and effective delivery of nucleic acids (NAs) using nanoparticles. A further emphasis would be laid on the mechanism of delivery of NAs, the barriers encountered and the strategies adapted to combat them. An exhaustive account of the advantages as well shortcomings of all the delivery vectors being employed in delivery of various NAs will be provided. On final note the regulatory aspects of nanoparticles mediated NA would be discussed, with focus on their clinical relevance. The design and development of nucleic acid-based therapeutics for the treatment of diseases arising from genetic abnormalities has made significant progress over the past few years. NAs have been widely explored for the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases or to block cell proliferation and thereby caused diseases. Advances in synthetic oligonucleotide chemistry resulted in synthesis of NAs that are relatively stable in in vivo environments. However, cellular targeting and intracellular delivery of NAs still remains a challenge. Further development of NA-based therapeutics depends on the progress of safe and effective carriers for systemic administration. Nanomedicine has facilitated availability of vectors with diminished cytotoxicity and enhanced efficacy which are rapidly emerging as systems of choice. These vectors protect NAs from enzymatic degradation by forming condensed complexes along with targeted tissue and cellular delivery. During the past few years, a myriad reports have appeared reporting delivery of NAs mediated by nanoparticles. This book will provide an overview of nanoparticles being employed in the in vitro and in vivo delivery of therapeutically relevant NAs like DNA, siRNA, LNA, PNA, etc.

Advances in Semiconductor Nanostructures: Growth, Characterization, Properties and Applications focuses on the physical aspects of semiconductor nanostructures, including growth and processing of semiconductor nanostructures by molecular-beam epitaxy, ion-beam implantation/synthesis, pulsed laser action on all types of III-V, IV, and II-VI semiconductors, nanofabrication by bottom-up and top-down approaches, real-time observations using in situ UHV-REM and high-resolution TEM of atomic structure of quantum well, nanowires, quantum dots, and heterostructures and their electrical, optical, magnetic, and spin phenomena. The very comprehensive nature of the book makes it an indispensable source of information for researchers, scientists, and post-graduate students in the field of semiconductor physics, condensed matter physics, and physics of nanostructures, helping them in their daily research.

Emerging Nanotechnologies in Food Science presents the current knowledge and latest developments in food nanotechnology, taking a multidisciplinary approach to provide a broad and comprehensive understanding of the field. Food nanotechnology is a newly emergent discipline that is fast-growing and evolving. The discipline continues to benefit from advances in materials and food sciences and has enormous scientific and economic potential. The book presents nano-ingredients and engineered nanoparticles developed to produce technologically improved food from both food science and engineering perspectives. In addition, subsequent chapters offer a review of recent outstanding inventions in food nanotechnology and legal considerations for the protection of intellectual property in this area. With its multidisciplinary team of contributors, this book serves as a reference book for the ever-growing food nanotechnology science.

Adverse Effects of Engineered Nanomaterials: Exposure, Toxicology, and Impact on Human Health, Second Edition, provides a systematic evaluation of representative engineered nanomaterials (ENM) of high volume production and their high economic importance. Each class of nanomaterials discussed includes information on what scientists, industry, regulatory agencies, and the general public need to know about nanosafety. Written by leading international experts in nanotoxicology and nanomedicine, this book gives a comprehensive view of the health impact of ENM, focusing on their potential adverse effects in exposed workers, consumers, and patients. All chapters have been updated with new sections on the endocrine system and other organ systems. In addition, other newly added sections include introductory chapters on the physio-chemical characterization of nanomaterials and interactions between nanomaterials and biological systems, as well as a new chapter that explores risk assessment and management of nanomaterials. This book fills an important need in terms of bridging the gap between experimental findings and human exposure to ENM, also detailing the clinical and pathological consequences of such exposure in the human population.

Water Purification, a volume in the Nanotechnology in the Food Industry series, provides an in-depth review of the current technologies and emerging application of nanotechnology in drinking water purification, also presenting an overview of the common drinking water contaminants, such as heavy metals, organics, microorganisms, pharmaceuticals, and their occurrences in drinking water sources. As the global water crisis has motivated the industry to look for alternative water supplies, nanotechnology presents significant potential for utilizing previously unacceptable water sources. This books explores the practical methodologies for transforming water using nanotechnologies, and is a comprehensive reference to a wide audience of food science research professionals, professors, and students who are doing research in this field.

Functionalized Nanomaterials for the Management of Microbial Infection: A Strategy to Address Microbial Drug Resistance introduces the reader to the newly developing use of nanotechnology to combat microbial drug resistance. Excessive use of antibiotics and antimicrobial agents has produced an inexorable rise in antibiotic resistance in bacterial pathogens. The use of nanotechnology is currently the most promising strategy to overcome microbial drug resistance. This book shows how, due to their small size, nanoparticles can surmount existing drug resistance mechanisms, including decreased uptake and increased efflux of the drug from the microbial cell, biofilm formation, and intracellular bacteria. In particular, chapters cover the use of nanoparticles to raise intracellular antimicrobial levels, thus directly targeting sites of infection and packaging multiple antimicrobial agents onto a single nanoparticle.