Attacking Cancer Cells with Hydrogel Nanoparticles.February 15,2010.
One of the difficulties of fighting cancer is that drugs often hit other non-cancerous cells, causing patients to get sick. But what if researchers could sneak cancer-fighting particles into just the cancer cells? Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and the Ovarian Cancer Institute are working on doing just that. In the online journal BMCCancer they detail a method that uses hydrogels - less than 100 nanometers in size - to sneak a particular type of small interfering RNA(siRNA) into cancer cells. Once in the cell the siRNA turns on the programmed cell death the body uses to kill mutated cells and help traditional chemotherapy do it’s job.Source:Georgia Institute of Technology
New nanoparticle could improve cancer detection, drug delivery.February 12,2010.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida scientists have developed a new nanoparticle that could improve cancer detection and drug delivery. The particle, called a “micelle” and made up of a cluster of molecules called aptamers, easily recognizes tumors and binds strongly to them. It also has properties that allow it to easily get inside cells for intracellular studies and drug delivery.Source:University of Florida
Scientists discover novel materials approach to fighting cancer (w/ Video).February 8,2010.
Scientists from the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory and the University of Chicago Medical Center are shaking up the world of materials science and cancer research on the cover of the February 2010 issue of the journal Nature Materials.Source:Argonne National Laboratory
Nanotechnology in the Fight Against Cancer.February 5,2010.
A world-renowned medical researcher discusses the key role that nanotechnology has begun to play in the detection and treatment of cancer in an article that will appear in the March 2010 edition of Mechanical Engineering magazine.Source:ASME
Nanophysics,Nanosciences,Nanochemistry:
When molecules leave tire tracks: A new approach to optimizing molecular self-organization.February 18,2010.
Certain types of molecules form patterns when deposited onto substrates. Photovoltaic and sensor devices from organic compounds depend on this phenomenon of self-organization. Physicists of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universitaet in Munich, Germany, have now developed a model that predicts these patterns and thus allows optimization of the molecular synthesis in the future.Source:Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München.
Scientists turn light into electrical current using a golden nanoscale system.February 12,2010.
PHILADELPHIA –- Material scientists at the Nano/Bio Interface Center of the University of Pennsylvania have demonstrated the transduction of optical radiation to electrical current in a molecular circuit. The system, an array of nano-sized molecules of gold, respond to electromagnetic waves by creating surface plasmons that induce and project electrical current across molecules, similar to that of photovoltaic solar cells.Source:University of Pennsylvania.
New sensor exploits traditional weakness of nano devices.February 12,2010.
By taking advantage of a phenomenon that until now has been a virtual showstopper for electronics designers, a team led by Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Panos Datskos is developing a chemical and biological sensor with unprecedented sensitivity.Source:Oak Ridge National Laboratory
Nanomaterials,Nanocomposites:
Nanotechnology sparks energy storage on paper and cloth.February 21,2010.
By dipping ordinary paper or fabric in a special ink infused with nanoparticles, Stanford engineer Yi Cui has found a way to cheaply and efficiently manufacture lightweight paper batteries and supercapacitors (which, like batteries, store energy, but by electrostatic rather than chemical means), as well as stretchable, conductive textiles known as "eTextiles" – capable of storing energy while retaining the mechanical properties of ordinary paper or fabric.Source:Stanford University
Nanomedicine,Nanoimplants:
Delivering drugs on time and on target.February 4,2010.
Northeastern professor leading research on nanocarriers that would make a whole new class of drugs available to treat cancer and other diseases.Source:Northeastern University
Nanobiology :
Nanoparticles :
Study Examines How Nanoparticles Affect Marine Organisms.February 22,2010.
Manufactured nanomaterials can be found in such diverse applications as electronics, cosmetics, paints, and even medicines, but their effects on the environment remain largely unknown. In a new laboratory study, scientists have found that saltwater oysters and mussels take up and retain significant amounts of manufactured nanoparticles from seawater in clumps of so-called “marine snow.”Source:University of Connecticut
Nanostructures,Nanocapsules,Nanofilms,NanoSurfaces:
How many argon atoms can fit on the surface of a carbon nanotube?January 28,2010.
Phase transitions changes of matter from one state to another without altering its chemical makeup are an important part of life in our three-dimensional world. Water falls to the ground as snow, melts to a liquid and eventually vaporizes back to the clouds to begin the cycle anew.Source:University of Washington
Nanotubes:
Adenosine triphosphate detection in living cells with carbon nanotubes and luciferase.February 12,2010.
All living cells require a fuel to function: adenosine triphosphate (ATP), the cell "gasoline". Detecting ATP within cells can help researchers observe energetic physiological processes, such as signal cascades or transport processes. Furthermore, ATP depletion is related to certain diseases, such as Parkinson’s disease and ischemia (restricted blood flow within tissues).Source:Wiley
Nanopharms:
'Nanofactories': Stopping Bacterial Infections Without Antibiotics.January 27,2010.
New research at the A. James Clark School of Engineering could prevent bacterial infections using tiny biochemical machines—nanofactories—that can confuse bacteria and stop them from spreading, without the use of antibiotics.Source:University of Maryland
Quantum Computer:
In an important first for a promising new technology, scientists have used a quantum computer to calculate the precise energy of molecular hydrogen. This groundbreaking approach to molecular simulations could have profound implications not just for quantum chemistry, but also for a range of fields from cryptography to materials science.Source:ScienceDaily
Nanodanger,Safety:
NanoDevice,Nanoelectronics :
Sunny Record: Breakthrough for Hybrid Solar Cells.February 2,2010.
German scientists at the Department of Microsystems Engineering (IMTEK) and the Freiburg Materials Research Center (FMF) have succeeded in developing a method for treating the surface of nanoparticles which greatly improves the efficiency of organic solar cells.Source:Albert-Ludwigs-Universitut Freiburg
