Editing Nanomedicine (section)

== Tissue engineering ==
Nanotechnology may be used as part of [[tissue engineering]] to help reproduce, repair, or reshape damaged tissue using suitable nanomaterial-based scaffolds and growth factors. If successful, tissue engineering may replace conventional treatments like organ transplants or artificial implants. Nanoparticles such as graphene, carbon nanotubes, molybdenum disulfide and tungsten disulfide are being used as reinforcing agents to fabricate mechanically strong biodegradable polymeric nanocomposites for bone tissue engineering applications. The addition of these nanoparticles to the polymer matrix at low concentrations (~0.2 weight %) significantly improves in the compressive and flexural mechanical properties of polymeric nanocomposites.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Lalwani G, Henslee AM, Farshid B, Lin L, Kasper FK, Qin YX, Mikos AG, Sitharaman B | title = Two-dimensional nanostructure-reinforced biodegradable polymeric nanocomposites for bone tissue engineering | journal = Biomacromolecules | volume = 14 | issue = 3 | pages = 900–9 | date = March 2013 | pmid = 23405887 | pmc = 3601907 | doi = 10.1021/bm301995s }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Lalwani G, Henslee AM, Farshid B, Parmar P, Lin L, Qin YX, Kasper FK, Mikos AG, Sitharaman B | display-authors = 6 | title = Tungsten disulfide nanotubes reinforced biodegradable polymers for bone tissue engineering | journal = Acta Biomaterialia | volume = 9 | issue = 9 | pages = 8365–73 | date = September 2013 | pmid = 23727293 | pmc = 3732565 | doi = 10.1016/j.actbio.2013.05.018 }}</ref> These nanocomposites may potentially serve as novel, mechanically strong, lightweight bone implants.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Hasan |first1=Anwarul |last2=Morshed |first2=Mahboob |last3=Memic |first3=Adnan |last4=Hassan |first4=Shabir |last5=Webster |first5=Thomas |last6=Marei |first6=Hany |date=September 2018 |title=Nanoparticles in tissue engineering: applications, challenges and prospects |journal=International Journal of Nanomedicine |volume=13 |pages=5637–5655 |doi=10.2147/ijn.s153758 |doi-access=free |issn=1178-2013 |pmc=6161712 |pmid=30288038}}</ref>

For example, a flesh welder was demonstrated to fuse two pieces of chicken meat into a single piece using a suspension of gold-coated [[nanoshells]] activated by an infrared laser. This could be used to weld arteries during surgery.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Gobin AM, O'Neal DP, Watkins DM, Halas NJ, Drezek RA, West JL | title = Near infrared laser-tissue welding using nanoshells as an exogenous absorber | journal = Lasers in Surgery and Medicine | volume = 37 | issue = 2 | pages = 123–9 | date = August 2005 | pmid = 16047329 | doi = 10.1002/lsm.20206 | s2cid = 4648228 }}</ref>
Another example is [[nanonephrology]], the use of nanomedicine on the kidney.

The full potential and implications of nanotechnology uses within the tissue engineering are not yet fully understood, despite research spanning the past two decades.<ref name=":1" />