Wet Vs. Dry Nanotechnology
Nanotechnology, or the study of matter on its smallest scale, can be divided into two categories: wet and dry. Dry nanotechnology uses inorganic materials, including metals and semiconductors, to create items used by electrical and mechanical engineers to promote development in manufacturing techniques (Madon). Wet nanotechnology, on the other hand, studies nanoscale materials on a biological level, including cell parts. When the research in the field of nanotechnology first began to explode in the late twentieth century, dry nanotechnology was given priority, but now biologists and geneticists have stepped forward, developing materials to build structures that are essential for human life.
These advances in wet nanotechnology have serious implications for the future of medicine and genetics. Instead of being put on wait lists for organ transplants, patients could have their damaged organs replaced with tissues built using wet nanotechnology. Disabled and malfunctioning proteins and enzymes could be repaired or new proteins could be built, thus curing hundreds of diseases.
These advances in wet nanotechnology have serious implications for the future of medicine and genetics. Instead of being put on wait lists for organ transplants, patients could have their damaged organs replaced with tissues built using wet nanotechnology. Disabled and malfunctioning proteins and enzymes could be repaired or new proteins could be built, thus curing hundreds of diseases.