NANOTECHNOLOGY AND HEALTHCARE

A researcher from IISc Bengaluru has been awarded the New York Academy of Sciences–Tata Sons Transformation Prize 2025 for developing magnetic nanorobots, marking a significant breakthrough in nanomedicine.

Magnetic Nanorobots

• Magnetic nanorobots are microscopic, externally controlled machines made from biocompatible materials such as iron oxide and silica.
• Guided by external magnetic fields, they navigate blood vessels and tissues without an onboard power source.
• Their helix-shaped structure mimics bacterial motion, enabling drilling-like navigation in complex biological environments.
• They can be coated with drugs, transforming them into targeted delivery vehicles.

Key Applications in Healthcare

• Targeted Drug Delivery: Deliver drugs deep inside tumors, minimizing damage to healthy tissue.
• Diagnostics and Imaging: Used in biosensing, enhanced imaging, and biofilm removal.
• Minimally Invasive Procedures: Hyperthermia treatment and localized therapy, pain-free dental treatments targeting antibiotic-resistant bacteria.
• Broader Nanotechnology Applications: Regenerative medicine and tissue engineering, vaccine delivery platforms (e.g., mRNA vaccines)

Nanotechnology is Transformative

• Quantum size effects enable tunable optical and electronic properties.
• High surface area enhances catalytic and therapeutic efficiency.
• Superparamagnetism enables controlled motion and imaging applications.
• Supports crossing biological barriers like the Blood-Brain Barrier.

Key Challenges to Adoption

• Nanotoxicity: Uncertain long-term effects, bioaccumulation, and environmental persistence.
• Regulatory Gaps: Existing frameworks (e.g., CDSCO norms) are not tailored to nanoscale materials.
• Ethical and Social Concerns (ELSI): Privacy risks from implantable nanosensors.
• Economic and Scaling Constraints: High R&D costs and sophisticated instrumentation.

Way Forward

• Safety-by-design R&D: Develop biodegradable and green nanomaterials.
• Regulatory reform: Create nano-specific safety, testing, and approval frameworks.
• Ethical governance: Parallel ELSI research, transparency, and public engagement.
• Clinical translation: Support translational research and scalable manufacturing.

Magnetic nanorobots represent a paradigm shift in precision medicine, offering targeted, minimally invasive, and highly effective therapies. However, their successful clinical adoption depends on robust safety research, ethical governance, regulatory innovation, and equitable access, ensuring that nanotechnology transforms healthcare responsibly and sustainably.