Micro/Nanomachines: from Functionalization to Sensing and Removal

Abstract

Micro/nanomachines have attracted tremendous interest in chemo/bioanalytical science and environmental remediation due to the synergistic effect of unique motion characteristics and the inherited physicochemical properties from micro/nanomaterials. Past decade has witnessed great progresses on a wide array of micro/nanomachines with diverse functionalities for specific sensing and removal applications. The development of designed materials and structures, the exploration of new propulsion mechanism, and the realization of versatile functionalization are employed for potential applications. In this review, the recent advances in the exploration of functionalized micro/nanomachines are summarized, with special emphasis on the functionalization of micro/nanomachines and their corresponding sensing and removal capability. Possible challenges facing micro/nanomachines in sensing and removal application are discussed, accompanied with the extrapolated perspectives for the future focus.

Trends in Micro‐/Nanorobotics: Materials Development, Actuation, Localization, and System Integration for Biomedical Applications

“…Therein, the functionalization of m‐bots is crucial for diagnostics, isolation, and biosensing applications. [ 225,323–327 ] Based on the donor–receptor interactions, m‐bots can capture, transport, and release biomacromolecules and cells for isolation purposes. [ 328–332 ] Concanavalin A lectin shows strong coupling effect with polysaccharides.…”

Interactions between Biomedical Micro‐/Nano‐Motors and the Immune Molecules, Immune Cells, and the Immune System: Challenges and Opportunities

“…[ 6b ] Besides applications in cancer immunotherapy, coupling MNMs with immune molecules would provide analytical tools for disease diagnosis. [ 9b,28 ] As well, it provides a new platform for large‐scale detoxification.…”

Bubble-Assisted Three-Dimensional Ensemble of Nanomotors for Improved Catalytic Performance

“…Combination of the catalysis and the active colloidal matter offers a new strategy for overcoming the bottleneck and improving the catalytic performance. Micro-/nanomotors have attracted wide interests for decades owing to their controlled motion capability generated from the conversion of various kinds of energy sources into mechanical energy (Chen et al., 2018, Kim et al., 2018, Wang et al., 2015, Wang and Pumera, 2015, Wang et al., 2017, Zhang et al., 2019). The self-propelled micro-/nanomotors are fuel dependent that required the chemical energy and biochemical energy derived from the surrounding environment for autonomous navigation.…”