Applications of nanomaterials in COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

The novel coronavirus 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic represents one of the biggest global health threats in the last two decades, so researchers around the world are searching for solutions and treatments for COVID-19. At the time of writing, there are no specific drugs that have demonstrated suitable effectiveness in treating COVID-19. The current challenge involves designing tools for the prevention, rapid and accurate diagnosis, drug delivery, and effective treatment of this novel coronavirus. In this short review, we discuss how nanotechnology offers new ways to combat COVID-19, and how nanomaterials can be applied to control the COVID-19 outbreak. We also summarize relevant studies regarding the use of nanomaterials for preventing viral spread, preparing vaccines, and diagnosing coronavirus, as well as studies that show how nanoparticles can be used as drug delivery systems for the treatment of viral infections. Research on nanotechnology-based diagnosis, drug delivery, and antiviral therapy is currently in the early stages. However, the unique chemical properties of some nanomaterials highlight the broad prospect of nanomaterials in the future, and we propose that they will play an important role in the fight against COVID-19.

Keywords: COVID-19; Coronaviruses; Nanomaterials; Viral control.

Fig. 1

a Schematic illustration of photo-thermal conversion process of Au NRs upon light irradiation; b photo-thermal responsive FFP2 (N95) respirator containing a drop-casted Au NRs dispersion (black circle) along with a thermographic view of the same region exposed to NIR laser (λ = 810 nm; I = 200 mW·cm⁻²) acquired at c t = 0 s, and d t = 22 s; e temperature profiles of pristine (blue curve) and Au NRs treated respirator by turning On and Off NIR laser beam (water dispersed Au NRs (C = 3.2 × 10^–9 mol·L⁻¹) have longitudinal and transversal LSPR bands centered at 775 and 524 nm, respectively; dynamic IR thermographic analysis was carried out using a FLIR (A655sc) thermal-camera that produces thermal images of 640 × 480 pixels with an accuracy of ± 2 °C; thermal-camera was suitably equipped with a close-up IR lens characterized by a magnifying factor of 2.9x, a spatial resolution (IFOV) of 50 µm, and a reduced working distance). Reproduced with permission from Ref. [33]. Copyright 2020, Wiley

Fig. 2

Field-effect transistor (FET) sensor and its related operational process for diagnosis of COVID-19. Reproduced (adapted) with permission from Ref. [51]. Copyright 2020, American Chemical Society

Fig. 3

Selective naked-eye detection of COVID-19 RNA mediated by specially designed ASO-capped Au nanoparticles. Reproduced (adapted) with permission from Ref. [52]. Copyright 2020, American Chemical Society

Fig. 4

Nanoparticles (NPs) as antigen delivery system and immune response. Reproduced (adapted) with permission from Ref. [64]. Copyright 2020, Wiley