Our body is just like a machine, but a very complex one. It too needs to be repaired or serviced once in a while. With the progress of technology and science it is easier to do the repair work. Science combined with technology can make it easier to fight some of the most feared diseases like cancer. Nanotechnology can play a major role in bridging the gap between research and technology. The Karnataka State Higher Education Council organised a one day seminar on the frontiers of nanotechnology in their premises. The seminar was inaugurated by Prof CNR Rao and was followed by a series of talks on the applications of nanotechnology in the world of biology by Prof K Satyamoorthy, director of Manipal Institute of Life Sciences and Prof Deepthy Menon of Amrita Centre for Nano Sciences, Kochi. This was followed by a second session on the application of nanotechnology to chemistry and physics by Prof GU Kulkarni, Prof S Sampath from IISc and Prof SM Shivaprasad.The seminar started off with the talk on the application of nanotechnology in biology by Prof K Satyamoorthy. He talked about the brief history of nanotechnology with the pioneering work of Robert P Feynman. He also explained the application of nanotechnology. “All the pioneering work comes from the West. India’s contribution is negligible. So, as teachers and experts, it is our responsibility to train the young minds and make full use of the potential,” said Satyamoorthy.Dr Deepthy Menon spoke about how nanotechnology can help fight cancer. “A cancerous tumour takes long to grow. The cells take at least seven years to become malignant cells. The current technology can only detect cancerous cells that have a molecular weight of one gram. This is where we lose out on a lot of time. If we can detect the cell growth earlier, then we can stop the cancer from growing and prevent it from spreading throughout the body,” said Prof Deepthy. “Nanotechnology can be used to detect and track the cell mutation. This will give us an opportunity to stop the cancer before it goes out of control. Usually the patient goes to the doctor only in the last stages of cancer. Therefore people above the age of 30 should go for regular check-ups every year,” she added.Nanotechnology can also revolutionise cancer treatments. Radiation bombard the body with radiation cells which kill the cancer cells as well as the healthy cells. This causes weakness in the patient and makes it harder for them to fight the disease. “If we could send the chemicals only to the affected areas of the body then we would be more successful. We are researching on new nano particles which can carry the medicines to only the affected parts and can track the progress of the chemical,” noted Prof Deepthy. This collaboration between nanotechnology and the research world has led something called nano-oncology, which deals with the application of nanotechnology to fight cancer.Wrapped up Prof Satyamoorthy, “The world of nanotechnology is very vast. We are just taking baby steps in this field. India has a lot to give to the world. The youth today have a lot of ideas. We must make use of it.”
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