Progress in Nanorobotics for Advancing Biomedicine

IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 2021 Jan;68(1):130-147. doi: 10.1109/TBME.2020.2990380. Epub 2020 Dec 21.

Abstract

Nanorobotics, which has long been a fantasy in the realm of science fiction, is now a reality due to the considerable developments in diverse fields including chemistry, materials, physics, information and nanotechnology in the past decades. Not only different prototypes of nanorobots whose sizes are nanoscale are invented for various biomedical applications, but also robotic nanomanipulators which are able to handle nano-objects obtain substantial achievements for applications in biomedicine. The outstanding achievements in nanorobotics have significantly expanded the field of medical robotics and yielded novel insights into the underlying mechanisms guiding life activities, remarkably showing an emerging and promising way for advancing the diagnosis & treatment level in the coming era of personalized precision medicine. In this review, the recent advances in nanorobotics (nanorobots, nanorobotic manipulations) for biomedical applications are summarized from several facets (including molecular machines, nanomotors, DNA nanorobotics, and robotic nanomanipulators), and the future perspectives are also presented.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • DNA
  • Forecasting
  • Nanotechnology*
  • Robotics*

Substances

  • DNA