Nanoparticles
Putting the squeeze on cells
January 23, 2013 7:39 am | by Anne Trafton, MIT News Office | News | CommentsLiving cells are surrounded by a membrane that tightly regulates what gets in and out of the cell. This barrier is necessary for cells to control their internal environment, but it makes it more difficult for scientists to deliver large molecules such as nanoparticles for imaging, or proteins that can reprogram them into pluripotent stem cells. Now, researchers have now found a safe and efficient way to get large molecules through the cell membrane, by squeezing the cells through a narrow constriction that opens up tiny, temporary holes in the membrane.
CAMS used to determine biological fate of silica nanoparticles
January 4, 2013 9:48 am | News | CommentsIn a study published in Nano Letters, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL)'s Mike Malfatti, Heather Palko, Ed Kuhn, and Ken Turteltaub report on accelerator mass spectrometry measurements used to investigate the relationship between administered dose, pharmacokinetics (PK), and long-term biodistribution of carbon 14-labeled silica nanopartocles in vivo.
Nanoparticles reach new peaks
January 3, 2013 12:00 pm | News | CommentsPlasmonic gold nanoparticles make pinpoint heating on demand possible. Now Rice University researchers have found a way to selectively heat diverse nanoparticles that could advance their use in medicine and industry.
Scientists use light to remotely trigger biochemical reactions
December 13, 2012 9:40 pm | News | CommentsResearchers at Rice University have recently turned light into heat at the point of need, on the nanoscale, to trigger biochemical reactions remotely on demand. The method makes use of materials derived from unique microbes—thermophiles—that thrive at high temperatures but shut down at room temperature.
Multitasking plasmonic nanobubbles kill some cells, modify others
December 3, 2012 3:30 pm | by Mike Williams, Rice University | News | CommentsResearchers at Rice University have found a way to kill some diseased cells and treat others in the same sample at the same time. The process, which uses tunable plasmonic nanobubbles previously invented in the laboratory of Dmitri Lapotko, is activated by a pulse of laser light and leaves neighboring healthy cells untouched.
Research discovery could revolutionize semiconductor manufacture
November 29, 2012 9:33 am | News | CommentsA completely new method of manufacturing the smallest structures in electronics could make their manufacture thousands of times quicker, allowing for cheaper semiconductors. Instead of starting from a silicon wafer or other substrate, as is usual today, researchers have made it possible for the structures to grow from freely suspended nanoparticles of gold in a flowing gas.
Researchers create flexible, low-voltage circuits using nanocrystals
November 26, 2012 2:40 pm | News | CommentsElectronic circuits are typically integrated in rigid silicon wafers, but flexibility opens up a wide range of applications. In a world where electronics are becoming more pervasive, flexibility is a highly desirable trait, but finding materials with the right mix of performance and manufacturing cost remains a challenge. Now a team of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania has shown that nanocrystals of the semiconductor cadmium selenide can be "printed" or "coated" on flexible plastics to form high-performance electronics.
Researchers improve technology to detect hazardous chemicals
November 20, 2012 2:32 pm | News | CommentsScientists at Imperial College London have developed a system to quickly detect trace amounts of chemicals like pollutants, explosives, or illegal drugs. The new system can pick out a single target molecule from 10,000 trillion water molecules within milliseconds, by trapping it on a self-assembling single layer of gold nanoparticles.
Smartphones, labs to reveal health effects of environmental pollutants
November 20, 2012 10:27 am | News | CommentsA major new initiative in the European Union is being launched to build a complete picture of how environmental pollutants influence health. Researchers are being asked to use smartphones equipped with GPS and environmental sensors to monitor study participants and their exposure to potential hazards. This information will be combined with blood and urine analysis to investigate whether exposure to risk factors leaves chemical fingerprints that can be detected in bodily fluids.
Researchers create hollow, soft-shelled quantum dots
November 19, 2012 3:38 pm | News | CommentsSerendipity proved to be a key ingredient for the latest nanoparticles discovered at Rice University. The new "lava dot" particles were discovered accidentally when researchers stumbled upon a way of using molten droplets of metal salt to make hollow, coated versions of a nanotech staple called quantum dots.
Scientists unveil super-efficient solar energy technology
November 19, 2012 12:00 pm | News | CommentsRice University scientists have unveiled a new technology that uses nanoparticles to convert solar energy directly into steam. The new "solar steam" method from Rice's Laboratory for Nanophotonics (LANP) is so effective it can even produce steam from icy cold water.
Gold nanoparticle catalyst that learns from enzyme in nature
November 15, 2012 12:25 pm | News | CommentsScientists in Japan have developed a high activity gold nanoparticle catalyst that simplifies the function of enzymes in capturing substances. This new type of catalyst mimics enzyme function on the surface of cell membranes, which capture molecules of designated lengths and shapes. The findings indicate that gold nanoparticles thus equipped could support biological activities as a catalyst in the reactions of the living body.
New type of gel allows scientists to control its properties at will
November 6, 2012 11:44 am | News | CommentsResearchers in Switzerland have just published research on how to combine two gels in such a way that they can monitor and change, almost at will, the transparency, electrical properties, and stiffness of the material. Called a “bigel”, the unique material was built by combining DNA fragments with nanoparticles.
Research on nanocrystals to move from lab to market
October 29, 2012 10:33 am | by Iqbal Pittalwala | News | CommentsThe University of California, Riverside has granted an exclusive license to The Idea Zoo, Inc., to commercialize nanotechnology research developed in the lab of Yadong Yin, an associate professor of chemistry. The Idea Zoo was granted exclusive rights to seven patents that cover various aspects of advanced superparamagnetic colloidal nanocrystals. Specifically, the patents focus on magnetically tunable photonic crystals and the ability to commercialize them.
Lung mucus gel scaffold prevents nanoparticles from getting through
October 23, 2012 12:15 pm | News | CommentsUsing optical tweezers, researches have unraveled the mechanics behind mucus gel scaffolding in human lungs. The natural structures inside our lungs, they have found prevents nanoparticle movement beyond pore boundaries, protecting us from nanoscale objects such as viruses and diesel soot. It was previously unclear the extent to which such nanoparticles were prevented from moving.
Chemists pioneer new technique for nanostructure assembly
October 19, 2012 8:51 am | by Donna Hesterman, University of Florida | News | CommentsEngineered nanostructures are typically challenging to create with any sort of sophisticated. However, a new technique for growing new materials from nanorods has been developed the could represent a major breakthrough in the field. It shows how thermodynamic forces can be used to manipulate growth of nanoparticles.
New method measures movements of tiny devices at every step
October 17, 2012 7:35 am | News | CommentsMakers of minuscule moving machines, do you know where your micro- and nanorobots really are? Care to bet? A team of researchers at NIST likely would prevail in such a hypothetical wager. On the basis of its findings in a study of the motions of an experimental microelectromechanical system, the team might even offer better-then-even odds.
Engineers control thousands of cells simultaneously using magnetic nanoparticles
October 16, 2012 8:57 am | News | CommentsUsing clusters of tiny magnetic particles about 1,000 times smaller than the width of a human hair, researchers from University of California, Los Angeles have shown that they can manipulate how thousands of cells divide, morph, and develop finger-like extensions. The tool can be used in developmental biology to understand how tissues develop.
Researchers find way to prevent cracking in nanoparticle films
October 12, 2012 8:17 am | News | CommentsMaking uniform coatings is a common engineering challenge, and, when working at the nanoscale, even the tiniest cracks or defects can be a big problem. New research from University of Pennsylvania engineers has shown a new way of avoiding such cracks when depositing thin films of nanoparticles based on spin-coating.
Nanoscale drug discovery approach relies on in silico, in vivo, in vitro
October 10, 2012 10:58 am | News | CommentsUsing in silico computational tools to complement the results of in vivo and in vitro experiments, researchers at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory have revealed an atomic-level understanding of the mechanism by which nanoparticles inhibit the growth and metastasis of pancreatic tumors. The findings are promising for the development of particle-based therapies.
New study says nanoparticles don't penetrate the skin
October 1, 2012 3:46 am | News | CommentsResearch by scientists at the University of Bath is challenging claims that nanoparticles in medicated and cosmetic creams are able to transport and deliver active ingredients deep inside the skin. The study discovered that even the tiniest of nanoparticles did not penetrate the skin's surface.
Nanoparticles glow through thick layer of tissue
September 30, 2012 5:25 pm | News | CommentsThough optical imaging is ubiquitous in biomedical applications, current technologies lack the ability to look deep into tissue. However, an international research team has recently created unique photoluminescent nanoparticles that shine clearly through more than 3 cm of biological tissue—a depth that makes them a promising tool for deep-tissue optical bioimaging.
How electrons behave inside nano-pyramids
September 28, 2012 9:46 am | News | CommentsNanostructures of semiconducting materials, called quantum dots, look like miniscule pyramids. Inside each of these nano-pyramids are always only one or two electrons that essentially “feel” the constricting walls around them and are therefore tightly constrained in their mobility. Physicists have now successfully studied the special energy states of the electrons trapped inside individual quantum dots, helping us better understand these objects.
Laundry additive helps bust pollution
September 28, 2012 4:44 am | News | CommentsPlans are now proceeding to commercialize a new liquid laundry additive called CatClo, which contains microscopic pollution-eating particles. The chemical, developed in the U.K., contains nanoparticles of titanium dioxide that grip onto fabric tightly. When the particles then come into contact with nitrogen oxides in the air, they react with these pollutants and oxidize them in the fabric, removing up to 5 g of nitrogen oxides per day.
Diamondoid nanoparticles improve electron emitters
September 19, 2012 8:15 am | News | CommentsDiamondoids are nanoparticles made of only a handful of carbon atoms, arranged in the same way as in diamond, forming nanometer-sized diamond crystals. Researchers at the Advanced Light Source in California discovered that these tiny diamonds can act as a monochromator for electrons. Recently, they have proven the ability of a diamondoid cover to boost photoemission electron microscopy performance.
