Please follow this link to watch the live webstream of this event.

The term nanotechnology has been around for a while, but recent advancements and applications of nanoscience are revolutionizing the fields of biology and medicine. Nano-sized artificial molecular motors and machines are created using biological molecules, while nanomedicine is utilized to target cancer cells, deliver drugs and fight antibiotic resistant bacteria.

The recent coronavirus crisis shows how the field of nanobiosensors may be key to finding innovative solutions for a quick response, and also to cope with future infectious outbreaks. And yet the discussion about the ethics of nanotechnology is ongoing: great opportunities come with huge responsibilities.

The aim of this online STOA workshop is to highlight how the latest developments in nanotechnology are transforming biology and medicine; how nanotechnology is being used to fight the coronavirus as well as future pandemics; and to discuss consumer perception of nanotechnology as well as responsible research and innovation in Europe.

Programme

14:30 - 14:40 Welcome by Lina GÁLVEZ MUÑOZ, MEP and STOA Panel Member

14:40 - 15:55 Presentations

• Nano comes to life: how nanotechnology is transforming medicine and the future of biology
  Sonia CONTERA, Associate Professor of Biological Physics at Oxford Physics Department, author of Nano Comes to Life, Oxford, United Kingdom

• Nanobiosensors in fight against coronavirus
  Laura M. LECHUGA, CSIC Research Professor and Group Leader of ICN2 Nanobiosensors and Bioanalytical Applications Group, head of CONVAT project, Barcelona, Spain

• Ethics, and responsible research and innovation in nanotechnology
  Maurizio SALVI, Senior Policy Analyst, Unit RTD.03 - Chief Scientific Advisors, Scientific Advice Mechanism, European Commission
  

• Consumer perception of nanotechnology
  Roxanne VAN GIESEN, Senior researcher consumer research at CentERdata, Tilburg, The Netherlands

15:55 - 16:20 Panel Discussion

16:20 - 16:30 Closing remarks by Lina GÁLVEZ MUÑOZ and Petra DE SUTTER, both MEP and STOA Panel Members