© 2003 Robert A. Freitas Jr. All Rights Reserved.

Robert A. Freitas Jr., Nanomedicine, Volume IIA: Biocompatibility, Landes Bioscience, Georgetown, TX, 2003

15.5.7.2 Mechanical Cell Membrane Disruptions

Medical nanorobots that interact with living cells may cause mechanical damage to cellular lipid bilayer membranes – in particular the plasmalemmal, organelle and vesicular membranes. Membrane mechanocompatibility issues include natural cell membrane wounding (Section 15.5.7.2.1); cytopuncture and membrane resealing (Section 15.5.7.2.2); resident transmembrane nanodevice penetrators (Section 15.5.7.2.3); and organelle membrane breach by nanorobots (Section 15.5.7.2.4). Molecular dynamics simulations of lipid bilayer membranes have been underway for more than a decade [4637-4644].

Last updated on 30 April 2004