title: Scope of atomic force microscopy in the advancement of nanomedicine.
abstract: One of the most exciting fields of current research is nanomedicine, but its definition and landscape remains elusive due to its continuous expansion in all directions and thus constantly eroding its boundaries and defying definitions. This lack of conceptual framework and confusing definitions was a hurdle for policy makers to enunciate credible goals and allocate resources for the advancement of the field. In this mini review, we have provided a broad framework of nanomedicine which defines its elusive landscape, and we hope this framework will accommodate its explosive growth in the future. Also, we have highlighted the role and scope of atomic force microscopy techniques in the advancement of nanomedicine. For improving health care of all that eventually would require successful intervention at fundamental biological processes, the importance of understanding the structure-function relationship of biomolecules cannot be over emphasized. In this context, AFM and its variants play a pivotal role in contributing towards the nanomedicine knowledge-base that is required for fruitful developments in nano-diagnostics and nano-therapeutics.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, University of California at San Diego, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0412, USA. Srinivasan@ucsd.edu
authors.forename: Srinivasan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ramachandran
authors.forename: Ratnesh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lal
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D002468:Cell Physiological Phenomena; D006801:Humans; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000737:chemistry; D008051:Lipid Bilayers; D046210:Microfluidic Analytical Techniques; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force / Q000379:methods*; D050997:Nanomedicine / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends
chemical_list: D007473:Ion Channels; D008051:Lipid Bilayers