Nanomaterial-assisted light-induced poration and transfection of mammalian cells

Abstract: This chapter describes recent developments in cell poration and transfection using both nanomaterials and light. The chapter is divided into three major sections. The first section reviews the current viral and nonviral transfection methods with an emphasis on the physical approaches. The second section presents some important aspects of using nanomaterials to assist light-induced cell membrane poration: the underlying mechanisms, the advantages of functionalizing nanomaterials and concerns about their potential toxicity. The third section summarizes the recently reported transfection studies using light-induced micro/nanomaterials, including plasmonic metallic nanoparticles, carbon nanoparticles and biodegradable polymeric microparticles. Finally, the chapter concludes on further work to be explored in the nano-opto-transfection field.