Cell Membrane Coating Nanotechnology

Abstract

Nanoparticle‐based therapeutic, prevention, and detection modalities have the potential to greatly impact how diseases are diagnosed and managed in the clinic. With the wide range of nanomaterials available, the rational design of nanocarriers on an application‐specific basis has become increasingly commonplace. Here, a comprehensive overview is provided on an emerging platform: cell‐membrane‐coating nanotechnology. As a fundamental unit of biology, cells carry out a wide range of functions, including the remarkable ability to interface and interact with their surrounding environment. Instead of attempting to replicate such functions via synthetic techniques, researchers are now directly leveraging naturally derived cell membranes as a means of bestowing nanoparticles with enhanced biointerfacing capabilities. This top‐down technique is facile, highly generalizable, and has the potential to greatly augment existing nanocarriers. Further, the introduction of a natural membrane substrate onto nanoparticles surfaces has enabled additional applications beyond those traditionally associated with nanomedicine. Despite its relative youth, there exists an impressive body of literature on cell membrane coating, which is covered here in detail. Overall, there is still significant room for development, as researchers continue to refine existing workflows while finding new and exciting applications that can take advantage of this developing technology.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Mar 27, 2018
Source ID
10.1002/adma.201706759

Entities

People

  • Ashley V. Kroll
  • Liangfang Zhang
  • Ronnie H Fang
  • Weiwei Gao

Organizations

  • Defense Threat Reduction Agency
  • National Institutes of Health
  • National Science Foundation
  • University of California, San Diego

Tags

Readers

  • Nanocomposite Materials Science
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Biotechnology
  • Biotechnology - Cancer Biotech