International Journal of Management, Technology And Engineering ISSN NO : 2249-7455

A Review on Nanorobotics in Gene Therapy

Ayush Phani1,Pulkit Jain2 1Student, Department of Mechatronics Engineering Chandigarh University, Gharuan 2Assistant Professor, Department of Mechatronics Engineering Chandigarh University, Gharuan [email protected]

Abstract

In this paper we will be discussing the development in the past few years in the field of nanorobotics and nano technology and their use in various fields. We will also be discussing about how nanotechnology will have a great impact in the medical field and how in the near future they may help in the treatment of diseases that may be caused due to genetic disorders.

Keywords: Nanomachines; Gene Therapy; SCGT and GGT

Introduction Nanorobots refers to the technology of the engineering discipline of designing robots and devices of their original size of some micrometres and scaling them down to nano-scale (nm, one millionth of a metre). Nanorobots or microbots are still in the research and development stages. Some nanomachines are still being developed, whereas, some have already been tested. The most number of applications of nanorobotics or microbots is in the field of medicine. Let us consider a circumstance where there is a blockage in one's artery near one of his vital organs. In such a situation it is difficult for even an experienced professional surgeon to remove the blockage while giving the guarantee of the patient's body functions. In the same case if one uses a swarm of nanobots it is way easier to remove the blockage from the inside of the artery without having the risk of damaging any vital organs. With further development in technology nanobots or microbots will also be available to be used in various fields. Scientists have already begun their research for the development of nanomachines that can detect and cure harmful viruses and as well as increase the immunity of one's body to reject these viruses. Some major applications of nanorobotics or microbots in the medical field are treatment and diagnosis of diabetes, bio-chips, nubots, gene therapy, etc.. In this paper we will be discussing about the use of nanorobotics in gene therapy. But before that we have to learn about the development done so far in nanorobotics in the field of medical science.

History of Nanorobotics in Medicine: According to Richard Feynman, it was Albert Hibbs, Feynmans former graduate student and collaborator, who had originally suggested him the idea of Feynmans theoretical micromachines or nanomachines in medicine. Hibbs suggested that certain machines used for repair may one day be reduced in size to the point, where in theory, it is possible to (as Feynman put it) "swallow the surgeon". The history of nanobots or microbots as an integrated circuit for medical field is highlighted as an advanced CMOS nanoelectronical device. The practical experiments of nanobot invention consists of an engineering based prototyping device with applied approach using current and emerging technology trends in their manufacturing. In the near future nanorobots will provide an enormous impact in the development and usage of advanced biomedical instrumentation with improvement in the common clinical practices. It provides a cutting edge technology for the diagnosis, drug delivery, laparoscopic nanosurgery and health care, with the application in the curing of cancer, diabetes, brain aneurysm, cardiology and contagious disease.

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Literature Review Gene Therapy: It refers to the alterations in the faulty genes in one's body to treat the diseases related to the genetics. Generally the DNA which does not have any faulty genes is inserted into the body's cells but other methods are also used. The most common method used is by the use of viral vectors. The idea of gene therapy was given in 1972, by authors who were very caution before beginning human gene therapy studies. Martin Cline had performed the very first gene therapy ever recorded in history on 10 July, 1980. It was an unsuccessful attempt where he used gene therapy for organ transplantation. Recently gene therapy is being given a lot of importance in the medical field as it may make a breakthrough in extending the life of a human being as well as even making all the painfull diagnosis processes and treatments.

Types of cells in gene therapy: Gene therapy can be classified into two types: Somatic- In somatic cell gene theray (SCGT), the healing genes are transferred into each cell other than the reproductive cells. These modifications made in one's DNA effect only the patient and will not be transferred to their offspring. It can be considered as if it represents the basic mainstream and clinical research, in which the healing DNA is used to treat diseases. This method is already in use in many parts of the US. Most of them focus on genetic disorders like haemophilia, thalassaemia, immunodeficiency, etc..

Germline- In germline gene therapy (GGT) the reproductive cells are modified by introducing functional genes in their genomes. This causes the modification in the complete genome of the organism. Therefore these changes are heritable and are passed down to the next generation. Many countries like Australia, Canada, Germany, Netherlands and Germany have prohibited GGT for application on human beings, for both technical as well as ethical reasons. It is very risky when compared to SCGT as there is very less knowledge and understanding regarding GGT.

Use of Nanorobotics in Gene Therapy: Nanorobots are also used for gene therapy. A nanobots specialised in genetic treatment is also the carrier of the healthy genome and is also capable of identifying and treating the faulty gene. As nanobots are smaller than the size of a single cell, hence it is easier for them to get closer to the nucleus and do the treatment. For the treatment of genes it generally uses two hands to cut and remove the faulty genes and replace it with the healthy one's. Nanorobots are mostly used for somatic gene therapy as it concentrates on each of the individual cell of the body. Further development in this field can lead to the eradication of diseases that may be caused due to genetic disorders or due to faulty genes.

Conclusion In this paper we have discussed the development in the past few years in the field of nanorobotics and nano technology and their use in various fields. The authors have also spoken about how nanotechnology will have a great impact in the medical field and how in the near future they may help in the treatment of diseases that may be caused due to genetic disorders.

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