A focus of the day was medicine and nanotechnology, which I found interesting because I might want to study medicine. I have heard that nanotechnology could be the future of medicine, but I did not know what this really meant. A lab visit today provided a perfect example.
We all use cell phones for calling, texting, playing games, emailing, and taking pictures, but imagine what could happen if cell phones were used for medical purposes. In our first lab visit with Drs. Aydogan Ozcan and Sungkyu Seo, we saw that this is possible and could dramatically change the way patients seek medical attention. This would happen using the LUCAS cell phone. A special camera would be attached to the back of a cell phone such as a Blackberry. This technology is based on the lensfree ultra-wide-field cell monitoring array platform based on shadow imaging. The camera could be used for blood analysis and would be a cheap alternative for developing countries (ex: Africa with diseases such as AIDS and malaria). It would take a picture of the patient’s blood cells and send the image to a hospital. The hospital would examine the image and send back the results in a few days. I think this rising technology would have a huge impact on the medical world, and I look forward to seeing whether it is successful or not. Of course, there are some factors to consider with the LUCAS cell phone. Will people in developing countries be able to afford them? Will the results be worse or the same as going to a doctor?
Scientist holding LUCAS cell phone
Red blood cells that could be seen using LUCAS cell phone
Scientist holding solution containing breast cancer cells
Another aspect of the connection between medicine and nanotechnology that interested me related to treatment of cancer. Hundreds of thousands of Americans die of cancer each year, many of which die because of the chemotherapy treatment. With nanotechnology, treatment could be targeted at just cancer cells, rather than all cells, including the good ones. I really enjoyed getting to see actual breast cancer cells in a lab visit today. They were from a lady that died because of the cancer. This inspired me to want to be a part of the research being done to find alternative ways to target cancer cells.
http://www.understandingnano.com/nanomedicine.html
http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/530158_2
http://www.naturalnews.com/012727.html
http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/02/03/medical.imaging.device/index.html