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Nanotechnology and Nutrition

Presented by Yan DuanJuly 27th 2013

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Introduction1

History and Development2

Current Research/Application3

Applications in food industry4

Potential Problems5

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Nanotechnology (sometimes shortened to "nanotech") is the manipulation of matter on an atomic and molecular scale or say, matter with at least one dimension sized from 1 to 100 nanometers.

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Source: http://inl.int/what-is-nanotechnology-2

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Originally, is referred as moving atomic scale particles, like this video from IBM……

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It WAS a particular goal of manipulating nano-sized particles, but now it becomes a widespread category that includes all types of research and technologies that deal with the special properties of matter that occur below the given size threshold.

It’s not a specific technology, it’s a general

way/method to conduct research and to change the world.

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"There's Plenty of Room at the Bottom"

Back to 1959, Richard Feymann’s famous inspiring lecture about nanotechnolgy

Later on, more and more famous scientists and engineers like Norio Taniguchi and K. Eric Drexler were working on this cutting-edge technology (or a better saying is "idea“.)

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org

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In 1980s, nanotechnology got a boost due to several developments of new equipments, for example, scanning tunneling microscope (STM) in 1981.

Now due to its promising future, There’s a word-wide government support(graph).

US, National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI). Canada, NINT, U of A.

Source: http://www.chembio.uoguelph.ca

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Nano-technology was simply regarded as a technology that people use to move atom-size particles, so what could that actually do?

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Bio-EngineeringEnergy

Nano Fabrication

Nano Medicine & Drugs

Optical Engineering

Nano Devices

Nanotech

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Size Nature

NanoTech in Food Industry

Functional Nature

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Nano-size powders for increasing absorption of nutrients, such as vitamins, antioxidants, fats, proteins.

Since natural product like extracts and minerals with low bioavailability, are easily affected by factors such as solubility and stability, which leads to limited absorption of body nutrients, nanotechnology-based water-soluble nutraceuticals could contribute for this nutrients' loss.

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Source: Computer simulation of the translocation of nanoparticles with different shapes across a lipid bilayer Kai Yang & Yu-Qiang Ma Nature Nanotechnology 5, 579–583 (2010) doi:10.1038/nnano.2010.141

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Nano-capsules for delivery of pesticides, fertilizers, and other agrichemicals more efficiently.

Vitamin sprays that disperse nano-droplets for better absorption.

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Nanotechnology enable single molecule detection for determining enzyme/substrate interactions of food: usually attach a fluorescent nanoparticle, or a label, to the target.

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And now there's a cutting-edge new version undergoing: a label-free detection, which still involves nanotech.

Source: Image courtesy of Polytechnic Institute of New York University

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A laser sends light through a glass fiber to a detector. When a microsphere is placed against the fiber, certain wavelengths of light detour into the sphere and bounce around inside, creating a dip in the light that the detector receives. When the target molecule clings to a gold nanoshell attached to the microsphere, the microsphere’s resonant frequency shifts by a measureable amount.

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Targeted genetic engineering: vaccine delivery Nanoparticles for NDA delivery to plants/vegetables.

Nanorobotics:The current method of extracting nutrients from food – eating vegetables, fruits, meats, fish, grains, and nuts; then allowing our digestive system to select only the nutrients our body needs, and discard the rest.

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Nanorobotics: In the future, nutritions need to be tailored exclusively to meet each person’s body requirements for every minute of every day.

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To implement this very forward technology, we could wear a special "nutrient garment” such as a belt. The belt would be loaded with millions of nutrient-bearing nanobots, which would enter and leave the body through our skin.

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Health

Potential Negative impacts of Nanotech

Environment

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The extremely small size of nanomaterials also means that they are much more readily taken up by the human body than larger sized particles.

That could raise up several health issues… For example, some nanoparticles on exposure to

tissue and fluids will immediately adsorb onto their surface some of the macromolecules they encounter. This may, for instance, affect the regulatory mechanisms of enzymes and other proteins.

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Other properties of nanomaterials that influence toxicity include: chemical composition, shape, surface structure, surface charge, aggregation and solubility, and the presence or absence of functional groups of other chemicals.

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Nano-pollution: First, in their free form, nanoparticles can be released into the air or water during production, or production accidents, or as waste by-product of production, and ultimately accumulate in the soil, water, or plant life. Second, in fixed form, where they are part of a manufactured substance or product, they will ultimately have to be recycled or disposed of as waste.

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Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Environmental_implications_of_nanotechnology

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