Biosciences Division, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831, USA; email:
Center for Nanophase Materials Science, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee 37831, USA.
Annu Rev Anal Chem (Palo Alto Calif). 2018 Jun 12;11(1):351-373. doi: 10.1146/annurev-anchem-061417-125635. Epub 2018 Feb 28.
Understanding and predicting how biosystems function require knowledge about the dynamic physicochemical environments with which they interact and alter by their presence. Yet, identifying specific components, tracking the dynamics of the system, and monitoring local environmental conditions without disrupting biosystem function present significant challenges for analytical measurements. Nanomaterials, by their very size and nature, can act as probes and interfaces to biosystems and offer solutions to some of these challenges. At the nanoscale, material properties emerge that can be exploited for localizing biomolecules and making chemical measurements at cellular and subcellular scales. Here, we review advances in chemical imaging enabled by nanoscale structures, in the use of nanoparticles as chemical and environmental probes, and in the development of micro- and nanoscale fluidic devices to define and manipulate local environments and facilitate chemical measurements of complex biosystems. Integration of these nano-enabled methods will lead to an unprecedented understanding of biosystem function.
理解和预测生物系统的功能需要了解它们相互作用和改变的动态物理化学环境。然而，在不破坏生物系统功能的情况下，确定特定的组件、跟踪系统的动态以及监测局部环境条件仍然是分析测量的重大挑战。纳米材料由于其大小和性质，可以作为生物系统的探针和界面，并为解决其中一些挑战提供解决方案。在纳米尺度上，出现了可以利用的材料特性，可用于定位生物分子并在细胞和亚细胞尺度上进行化学测量。在这里，我们综述了纳米结构实现的化学成像、纳米粒子作为化学和环境探针的应用，以及微纳尺度流体器件的开发等方面的进展，这些进展用于定义和操纵局部环境，并促进复杂生物系统的化学测量。这些纳米技术的整合将使我们对生物系统的功能有一个前所未有的理解。
