If we consider the views of materials scientists then viruses can be termed as organic nanoparticles and since their surface has specific tools it can cross the barriers of the host cells. As a result viruses are implemented in materials sciences as scaffolds for covalently linked surface modifications. This technique is emerging as a basis for engineering approaches for nanomaterials and has also opened up a number of applications beyond medicine and biology.
Since viruses can be multiplied in appropriate tissue and cell cultures despite the fact that they don’t have any metabolic activity of their own still nature viral particles can be used as a durable building block for composite material. Along with a combination of molecular biology approaches it provides a new possibility for production and engineering of hybrid composite materials from nanoparticles. Professor Donath along with Martin Fischlechner have become the first people to publish a review on the merging uses of viruses as building blocks in nanotechnology. Though it’s still in its infancy but promising growth is expected in this arena.
Via nanowerk
