US Patent 7908908 - Identifying biointeractive nanostructures

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7908908.html

This patent from the University of Florida Research Foundation proposes a method of rapid screening and isolation of nanostructures that exhibit unique properties in biological systems. Claim 1 reads:

1. A method of screening for biointeractive nanostructures comprising:

providing a plurality of nanostructure candidates on a substrate; and

interacting said nanostructure candidates with a SPM probe comprising a cantilever unit that comprises a lever portion and a probe portion provided at a free end of said lever portion, said probe portion comprising one or more living cells adhered thereto;

wherein a nanostructure candidate exhibiting adhesion to said probe is identified as a biointeractive nanostructure.