Nanoparticles

Nanoparticles such as polymeric micelles or liposomes have been developed with progress in nanotechnology and have been applied to a wide range of fields such as drug/gene delivery. This chapter focuses on applications of these nanoparticles for targeted drug and gene delivery. More recently, nanoparticles have been used to improve immunity, adsorption of active oxygen, adjuvant material, virus neutralization, etc. For example, excess reactive oxygen species (ROS), which is a trigger of oxidative stress, is well known to have a relationship with not only aging but also various types of diseases such as cancers, myocardial infarction, inflammatory bowel disease, kidney failure, arteriosclerosis, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, Parkinson’s disease, and Alzheimer’s disease. Therefore, the ROS scavenger micelles have recently been applied in the treatment of various types of diseases. The chapter ends with an overview of some of the future trends in applications in biotechnology and biomedicine.