Applications of ceramic nanoparticles in Nanomedicine

This paper reports on two examples of biomedical applications of ceramic nanoparticles. Thanks to their physical and chemical inertia, barium titanate nanoparticles and boron nitride nanotubes have been proved to have an optimal in vitro biocompatibility, even at high concentrations. Barium titanate nanoparticles-doxorubicin composites are successfully internalized by cancer cells, and allow for a considerable enhancement of drug up-take. Conversely, boron nitride nanotubes are explored as “nanotransducers”, thanks to their excellent piezoelectric properties. These two examples encourage further investigations and applications in biology and medicine of ceramic nanomaterials, that exhibit interesting advantages respect to traditional materials.