Nanopore Technology for Biomedical Applications

The ability to create well-de®ned and controlled interfaces has been an area of great interest over the last few years, particularly in the biomedical arena. This paper will describe the development of technology for the fabrication of nanopore membranes, and their operation in biological environments. With monodisperse pores sizes as small as 10 nanometers, these membranes offer advantages in their reproducibility, and their ability to be integrated with controlled biochemical surface modi®cation protocols. A comprehensive review of results in the areas of nanopore and biocapsule microfabrication technologies, biocompatibility of nanomembrane materials, biologically appropriate post-processing protocols (bonding, sterilization), surface modi®cation protocols, and appropriate mass transport models will be presented. The results point to the potential of using such technologies for therapeutic applications including immunoisolation biocapsules, drug delivery devices, and targeted biorecognition platforms.