Tiny technology proves big: a challenge at engineering, medicine and pharmaceutical sciences interface

Nanoscale materials with a broad spectrum of applications are providing a new foundation for technological integration and innovation. In this article, we review various polymers being used, their polymeric properties, nanoparticle (NP) fabrication, and mechanisms and kinetics of drug release. Specific information is given on each polymer regarding transportation, fate, and delivery issues. Nanoparticles have been developed to deliver conventional drug molecules, peptides and proteins, vaccines, and genes or nucleotides. Nanoparticles have wide application in fields such as cancer therapeutics and targeted drug delivery, including transbarrier brain delivery, dermal and transdermal delivery, intraocular delivery, parenteral delivery, and imaging and diagnostics. In this review, we focus on the potentials of nanotechnology in medicine, and we discuss different nanoparticulate drug delivery systems, including polymeric NPs, metal and metal oxide NPs, ceramics, quantum dots, carbon nanotubes, polymeric micelles, and dendrimers along with their applications in therapeutics, imaging, and diagnostics. In addition, we identify several interesting developments that will affect the future of nanotechnology and nanomedicine.