Nanoinformatics, Computer Applications for Nanomedicine

Abstract

Nanoinformatics emerged in the early 21st century as a response to the need for computer applications at the nano level. While nanomaterials offer the potential for developing new devices in various industrial and scientific fields, they also provide revolutionary perspectives in disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment in humans. This review paper analyzes different aspects of nanoinformatics with a special focus on nanomedicine. Another important aspect is the use of informatics in further advancing the biological and clinical applications of basic research in nanoscience and nanotechnology. Nanoinformatics can accelerate the development of the emerging field of nanomedicine, similar to what happened with the Human Genome and other -omics projects, through the exchange of modeling and simulation methods and tools, linking toxicity information with clinical and personal databases, or developing new approaches for scientific studies.