Contents


Chapter

Abstract

Rafael Vázquez-Duhalt

virus-like particles are reviewed and discussed.

virus-like particles, virus, capsids

1. Introduction

reduced space [1].

1

Keywords: bionanotechnology, nanotechnology, nanomedicine,

Nanotechnology involves the study, design, and production of materials at a nanometric scale, from 1 to 100 nm at least in one of their dimensions. At this scale the materials show singular physicochemical properties at electric, optical, and mechanical levels, among others, which originated from the dramatic increase of the ratio of surface area to volume, as also from the electron confinement in a

Bionanotechnology or nanobiotechnology is a section of nanotechnology that is focused on the research and development of new materials at nanometric scale based on biomolecules, such as proteins, nucleic acids, and carbohydrates for specific uses. Among these natural materials there are the pseudoviral particles or virus-like nanoparticles (VLPs) that have gained attention due to their potential applications in the biomedical field or nanomedicine [2]. In spite of the fact that the viral nanoparticles have been largely used as vaccines [3], new biomedical applica-

The VLPs, opposite to viruses, do not contain their natural genetic material, and

tions have been proposed, and they are reviewed and discussed here.

thus they are noninfectious and unable to replicate themselves. These viral

Viral Structures in Nanomedicine

Nanotechnology has made progress in the creation of new materials with potential applications in the biomedical field. The potential uses of viral particles in nanomedicine include applications, in areas such as drug delivery, medical imaging, biosensors, and enzyme replacement therapies. Virus capsids are used as protein cages, scaffolds, and templates for the production of bionanostructured materials, where organic and inorganic molecules could be incorporated in a precise and a controlled fashion. Potential applications of virus particles include the following: (i) gene therapy, in which the virus particle is used as a carrier to deliver the therapeutic gene to target cells; (ii) drug delivery to ensure that pharmaceuticals get into the body and reach the tissue where they are really needed; (iii) imaging, where virus-like particles are coupled with an imaging agent, and then using ultrasound, magnetic resonance, or even traditional X-ray, to visualize the inside of the targeted organ; (iv) biosensors for the detection of diverse analytes or to measure some physicochemical conditions of the target tissue; and (v) VLPs, which have been recently proposed as carriers to deliver enzymatic activity for enzyme replacement therapies. In this work, these potential biomedical applications of
