ABSTRACT
Cell membranes are composed of different lipids and functional proteins which provide a useful platform to assemble the membrane constituents and to perform important cell related reactions. The combination of nanostructures with these lipids is a flourishing area of research and can be beneficial for both biotechnology and nanotechnology. These hybrid structures with a size close to a biological molecule have structural and physicochemical properties originated from both lipids and nanomaterials. Drug incorporation ability in nanocarriers offer new prototype in the field of controlled drug targeting. In this chapter, we will discuss the synthesis of various lipid–solid nanohybrids and their practical applications for membrane-targeting molecules detection, cell-nanostructures interaction, and the investigation of membrane-mimicking platforms for different intercellular processes along with the in vivo fate of these nanocarriers.
