A biointerface is the region of contact between a biomolecule,
cell
Cell most often refers to:
* Cell (biology), the functional basic unit of life
Cell may also refer to:
Locations
* Monastic cell, a small room, hut, or cave in which a religious recluse lives, alternatively the small precursor of a monastery ...
, biological
tissue or living organism or organic material considered living with another
biomaterial
A biomaterial is a substance that has been engineered to interact with biological systems for a medical purpose, either a therapeutic (treat, augment, repair, or replace a tissue function of the body) or a diagnostic one. As a science, biomateria ...
or inorganic/organic material. The motivation for biointerface science stems from the urgent need to increase the understanding of interactions between biomolecules and surfaces. The behavior of complex macromolecular systems at materials interfaces are important in the fields of
biology
Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary i ...
,
biotechnology
Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used b ...
,
diagnostics
Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine "cause and effect". In systems engineer ...
, and medicine. Biointerface science is a multidisciplinary field in which biochemists who synthesize novel classes of biomolecules (
peptide nucleic acid
Peptide nucleic acid (PNA) is an artificially synthesized polymer similar to DNA or RNA.
Synthetic peptide nucleic acid oligomers have been used in recent years in molecular biology procedures, diagnostic assays, and antisense therapies. Due ...
s,
peptidomimetics,
aptamer
Aptamers are short sequences of artificial DNA, RNA, XNA, or peptide that bind a specific target molecule, or family of target molecules. They exhibit a range of affinities ( KD in the pM to μM range), with little or no off-target bindin ...
s,
ribozymes
Ribozymes (ribonucleic acid enzymes) are RNA molecules that have the ability to catalyze specific biochemical reactions, including RNA splicing in gene expression, similar to the action of protein enzymes. The 1982 discovery of ribozymes demonst ...
, and engineered
proteins
Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...
) cooperate with scientists who have developed the tools to position biomolecules with molecular precision (proximal probe methods, nano-and micro contact methods,
e-beam and
X-ray lithography
X-ray lithography is a process used in semiconductor device fabrication industry to selectively remove parts of a thin film of photoresist. It uses X-rays to transfer a geometric pattern from a mask to a light-sensitive chemical photoresist, or ...
, and bottom up self-assembly methods), scientists who have developed new
spectroscopic techniques to interrogate these molecules at the solid-liquid interface, and people who integrate these into functional devices (applied physicists, analytical chemists and
bioengineers). Well-designed biointerfaces would facilitate desirable interactions by providing optimized surfaces where biological matter can interact with other inorganic or organic materials, such as by promoting cell and tissue adhesion onto a surface.
Topics of interest include, but are not limited to:
*
Neural
In Biology, biology, the nervous system is the Complex system, highly complex part of an animal that coordinates its Behavior, actions and Sense, sensory information by transmitting action potential, signals to and from different parts of its ...
interfaces
* Cells in engineered microenvironments and regenerative medicine
* Computational and modeling approaches to biointerfaces
*
Membranes
A membrane is a selective barrier; it allows some things to pass through but stops others. Such things may be molecules, ions, or other small particles. Membranes can be generally classified into synthetic membranes and biological membranes. Bi ...
and membrane-based
biosensing
A biosensor is an analytical device, used for the detection of a chemical substance, that combines a biological component with a physicochemical detector.
The ''sensitive biological element'', e.g. tissue, microorganisms, organelles, cell recep ...
*
Peptides
Peptides (, ) are short chains of amino acids linked by peptide bonds. Long chains of amino acids are called proteins. Chains of fewer than twenty amino acids are called oligopeptides, and include dipeptides, tripeptides, and tetrapeptides.
A p ...
,
carbohydrates
In organic chemistry, a carbohydrate () is a biomolecule consisting of carbon (C), hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O) atoms, usually with a hydrogen–oxygen atom ratio of 2:1 (as in water) and thus with the empirical formula (where ''m'' may or may ...
and
DNA at biointerfaces
*
Pathogenesis
Pathogenesis is the process by which a disease or disorder develops. It can include factors which contribute not only to the onset of the disease or disorder, but also to its progression and maintenance. The word comes from Greek πάθος ''pat ...
and pathogen detection
* Molecularly designed interfaces
*
Nanotube
A nanotube is a nanometer-scale hollow tube-like structure.
Kinds of nanotubes
* BCN nanotube, composed of comparable amounts of boron, carbon, and nitrogen atoms
* Boron nitride nanotube, a polymorph of boron nitride
* Carbon nanotube, includes g ...
/
nanoparticle
A nanoparticle or ultrafine particle is usually defined as a particle of matter that is between 1 and 100 nanometres (nm) in diameter. The term is sometimes used for larger particles, up to 500 nm, or fibers and tubes that are less than 1 ...
interfaces
Related fields for biointerfaces are
biomineralization
Biomineralization, also written biomineralisation, is the process by which living organisms produce minerals, often to harden or stiffen existing tissues. Such tissues are called mineralized tissues. It is an extremely widespread phenomenon; ...
,
biosensors
A biosensor is an analytical device, used for the detection of a chemical substance, that combines a biological component with a physicochemical detector.
The ''sensitive biological element'', e.g. tissue, microorganisms, organelles, cell rece ...
, medical
implants, and so forth.
Nanostructure interfaces
Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology, also shortened to nanotech, is the use of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale for industrial purposes. The earliest, widespread description of nanotechnology referred to the particular technological goal o ...
is a rapidly growing field that has allowed for the creation of many different possibilities for creating biointerfaces.
Nanostructure
A nanostructure is a structure of intermediate size between microscopic and molecular structures. Nanostructural detail is microstructure at nanoscale.
In describing nanostructures, it is necessary to differentiate between the number of dimens ...
s that are commonly used for biointerfaces include: metal nanomaterials such as gold and
silver nanoparticle
Silver nanoparticles are nanoparticles of silver of between 1 nm and 100 nm in size. While frequently described as being 'silver' some are composed of a large percentage of silver oxide due to their large ratio of surface to bulk sil ...
s, semiconductor materials like
silicon nanowire Silicon nanowires, also referred to as SiNWs, are a type of semiconductor nanowire most often formed from a silicon precursor by etching of a solid or through catalyzed growth from a vapor or liquid phase. Such nanowires have promising applications ...
s, carbon nanomaterials, and
nanoporous
Nanoporous materials consist of a regular organic or inorganic bulk phase in which a porous structure is present. Nanoporous materials exhibit pore diameters that are most appropriately quantified using units of nanometers. The diameter of pores i ...
materials. Due to the many properties unique to each nanomaterial, like size, conductivity, and construction, various applications have been achieved. For example, gold nanoparticles are often
functionalized in order to act as drug delivery agents for cancers because their size allows them to collect at tumor sites passively. Also as an example, the use of silicon nanowires in nanoporous materials to create
scaffolds for synthetic tissues allows for monitoring of electrical activity and electrical stimulation of cells as a result of the photoelectric properties of the silicon.
The orientation of biomolecules on the interface can also be controlled through the modulation of parameters like pH, temperature and electrical field. For example, DNA grafted onto gold electrodes can be made to come closer to the electrode surface on application of positive electrode potential and as explained by Rant et al., this can be used to create smart interfaces for biomolecular detection. Likewise, Xiao Ma and others, have discussed the electrical control on the binding/unbinding of thrombin from aptamers immobilized on electrodes. They showed that on application of certain positive potentials, the thrombin gets separated from the biointerface.
Silicon nanowire interfaces
Silicon
Silicon is a chemical element with the symbol Si and atomic number 14. It is a hard, brittle crystalline solid with a blue-grey metallic luster, and is a tetravalent metalloid and semiconductor. It is a member of group 14 in the periodic tab ...
is a common material used in the technology industry due to its abundance as well as its properties as a semiconductor. However, in the bulk form used for computer chips and the like are not conducive to biointerfaces. For these purposes
silicon nanowire Silicon nanowires, also referred to as SiNWs, are a type of semiconductor nanowire most often formed from a silicon precursor by etching of a solid or through catalyzed growth from a vapor or liquid phase. Such nanowires have promising applications ...
s (SiNWs) are often used. Various methods of growth and composition of SiNWs, such as
etching
Etching is traditionally the process of using strong acid or mordant to cut into the unprotected parts of a metal surface to create a design in intaglio (incised) in the metal. In modern manufacturing, other chemicals may be used on other types ...
,
chemical vapor deposition
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) is a vacuum deposition method used to produce high quality, and high-performance, solid materials. The process is often used in the semiconductor industry to produce thin films.
In typical CVD, the wafer (substra ...
, and
doping, allow for the properties of the SiNWs to be customized for unique applications. One example of these unique uses is that SiNWs can be used as individual wires to be used for intracellular probes or extracellular devices or the SiNWs can be manipulated into larger macro structures. These structures can be manipulated into flexible, 3D, macropourus structures (like the scaffolds mentioned above) that can be used for creating synthetic
extracellular matrices
In biology, the extracellular matrix (ECM), also called intercellular matrix, is a three-dimensional network consisting of extracellular macromolecules and minerals, such as collagen, enzymes, glycoproteins and hydroxyapatite that provide structu ...
. In the case of Tian et al.,
cardiomyocyte
Cardiac muscle (also called heart muscle, myocardium, cardiomyocytes and cardiac myocytes) is one of three types of vertebrate muscle tissues, with the other two being skeletal muscle and smooth muscle. It is an involuntary, striated muscle th ...
s were grown on these structures as a way to create a synthetic tissue structure that could be used to monitor the electrical activity of the cells on the scaffold.
The device created by Tian et al. takes advantage of the fact that SiNWs are
field-effect transistor
The field-effect transistor (FET) is a type of transistor that uses an electric field to control the flow of current in a semiconductor. FETs (JFETs or MOSFETs) are devices with three terminals: ''source'', ''gate'', and ''drain''. FETs contro ...
(FET)-based devices. FET devices respond to
electric potential
The electric potential (also called the ''electric field potential'', potential drop, the electrostatic potential) is defined as the amount of work energy needed to move a unit of electric charge from a reference point to the specific point in ...
charges at the surface of the device, or in this case the surface of the SiNW. Being a FET device can also be taken advantage of when using single SiNWs as
biosensing
A biosensor is an analytical device, used for the detection of a chemical substance, that combines a biological component with a physicochemical detector.
The ''sensitive biological element'', e.g. tissue, microorganisms, organelles, cell recep ...
devices. SiNW sensors are nanowires that contain specific receptors on their surface that when bound to their respective antigens will cause changes in
conductivity
Conductivity may refer to:
*Electrical conductivity, a measure of a material's ability to conduct an electric current
**Conductivity (electrolytic), the electrical conductivity of an electrolyte in solution
** Ionic conductivity (solid state), ele ...
. These sensors have the ability to be inserted into cells with minimal invasiveness making them in some ways preferable to traditional biosensors like fluorescent dyes, as well as other nanoparticles which require target labelling.
[{{Cite journal, last1=Zhang, first1=Guo-Jun, last2=Ning, first2=Yong, date=2012-10-24, title=Silicon nanowire biosensor and its applications in disease diagnostics: A review, journal=Analytica Chimica Acta, volume=749, pages=1–15, doi=10.1016/j.aca.2012.08.035, pmid=23036462]
References
Biomineralization
Biosensors