The aim of this symposium is to showcase the next generation of functional and responsive nanomaterials towards biomedical applications. Over the past few years, there have been substantial advances in the development of functional nanomaterials engineered to systematically change their properties in response to endo/exogeneous stimuli. This behavior enables the use of such responsive nanosystems as therapeutic vectors with controlled release and systemic distribution, as probes for minimally invasive imaging, or as smart scaffolding materials for in vitro tissue models. Efforts towards increasing the sensitivity and specificity of stimuli-responsive nanomaterials continue to emerge—motivating the development of innovative systems and the adaptation of well-established responsive materials for novel biomedical applications.

The proposed symposium will bring attention to the aforementioned efforts, focusing on responsive nanomaterials for targeted theranostics or tissue engineering. In particular, the symposium will highlight nanoparticle-biomolecule conjugates that are integrated with functional systems and used as sensing or transducing elements for diagnostic and on-demand therapeutic interventions. We will cover a broad range of topics, which include the safety-by-design and fabrication of responsive nanomaterials, the characterization of their emerging properties, and their implementation in theranostics and tissue engineering. Topics will span from strategies for synthetic approaches, real time nano-theranostics (e.g., in vivo, in vitro, in line and in situ metrology), response-enabled nano-theranostics, to biointerfacing towards controlling cell/tissue behavior. The symposium will also cover parametric and fundamental studies which showcase key biological, chemical, and physical phenomena observed during nano-theranostics. Moreover, the symposium will welcome applications of responsive nanomaterials in targeted therapies, drug delivery, precision medicine, and regenerative medicine.

biomedical nanostructure toxicity