#Researchers Apply Nanopore Gene Sequencing to Proteins University of Pennsylvania researchers have made strides toward a new method of gene sequencing a strand of DNA bases are read as they are threaded through a nanoscopic hole.
Samples taken from a single individual could be analyzed this way, opening applications for disease diagnostics and research.
The study was led by Marija Drndic, a professor in the School of arts & Sciencesdepartment of Physics & Astronomy;
and Jeffery G. Saven, a professor in Penn Arts & Sciencesdepartment of Chemistry. It was published in the journal ACS Nano.
The Penn team technique stems from Drndic work on nanopore gene sequencing, which aims to distinguish the bases in a strand of DNA by the different percent of the aperture they each block as they pass through a nanoscopic pore.
Different silhouettes allow different amounts of an ionic liquid to pass through. The change in ion flow is measured by electronics surrounding the pore;
the peaks and valleys of that signal can be correlated to each base. While researchers work to increase the accuracy of these readings to useful levels,
Drndic and her colleagues have experimented with applying the technique to other biological molecules and nanoscale structures.
they set out to test their pores on even trickier biological molecules. here are many proteins that are much smaller and harder to manipulate than a strand of DNA that we like to study,
Saven said. ee interested in learning about the structure of a given protein, such as whether it exists as a monomer,
or combined with another copy into a dimer, or an aggregate of multiple copies known as an oligomer.
however, you can just collect the amount of data you need and the number of proteins you want to pass through the pore
Using the Drndic group silicon nitride nanopores which can be drilled to custom diameters, the research team set out to test their technique on GCN4-p1,
The monomer version is unzipped and is likely not helical; it probably more like a string.
and monomer form of the protein block a different number of ions, so we see a different drop in current
or not could be used to better understand the progression of disease. any researchers, Saven said,
ave observed these long tangles of aggregated peptides and proteins in diseases like Alzheimer and Parkinson,
Gabriel Shemer of Drndic lab and Christopher J. Lanci and Phillip S. Cheng of Saven lab also contributed to this work n
#MRI SCANNERS can Non-Invasively Steer Cells with Nanoparticles to Tumour Sites Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI SCANNERS have been used since the 1980s to take detailed images inside the body-helping doctors to make a medical diagnosis
and investigate the staging of a disease. An international team of researchers, led by Dr Munitta Muthana from the University of Sheffield's Department of Oncology,
have now found MRI SCANNERS can non-invasively steer cells, which have been injected with tiny super-paramagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIOS), to both primary and secondary tumour sites within the body.
This targeted approach is extremely beneficial for patients as it dramatically increases the efficiency of treatment
and drug doses could potentially be reduced-helping to alleviate side effects. Revolutionary cell-based therapies, which exploit modified human cells to treat diseases such as cancer,
have advanced greatly over recent years. However, targeted application of cell-based therapy in specific tissues,
such as those lying deep in the body where injection is not possible, has remained problematic. The new research suggests MRI SCANNERS are the key to administering treatments directly to both primary
and secondary tumours wherever they are located in the body. The study, published today (date) in Nature Communications shows that cancer mouse models injected with immune cells carrying SPIOS and armed with the cancer killing oncolytic virus (OV)
which infects and kills cancer cells, showed an 800 per cent increase in the effects of the therapy.
Dr Munitta Muthana, from the University of Sheffield, said:""Our results suggest that it is possible to use a standard MRI SCANNER to naturally deliver cell-based therapies to both primary and secondary tumours
which would normally be impossible to reach by injection.""This not only increases the therapeutic efficacy but also decreases the risk of unwanted side effects."
"The beauty of using the MRI SCANNER to administer the therapy is that you can also use it for its original purpose providing a real-time image-guide to ensure the treatment has gone where it is needed
#Universitat Jaume I Patents Graphene-Based Catalysts for Energy conversion and Storage Researchers at the Universitat Jaume I have developed materials based on graphene that can catalyse reactions for the conversion and storage of energy.
The technology patented by the UJI combines graphene and organometallic compounds in a single material without altering the most interesting properties of graphene,
such as its electrical conductivity. The technology, developed by the Group of Organometallic Chemistry and Homogeneous Catalysis (QOMCAT) of the UJI, is of great interest to the energy industry
and is part of the so-called"hydrogen economy An alternative energetic model in which energy is stored as hydrogen.
In this regard the materials patented by the UJI allow catalysing reactions for obtaining hydrogen from alcohols
and may also serve as storage systems of this gas. It is a novel technology since it uses graphene for the first time as a support of organometallic compounds.
These hybrid materials have catalytic properties and are modular and recyclable. Thus, the catalyst developed at the UJI can be recycled ten times without suffering a loss of activity, a very attractive property from the industrial viewpoint.
The new material is obtained also from a novel system of obtaining hybrid materials in a single step.
An easy and affordable system that allows that all the technology that is currently based on graphene can be converted easily using these new materials.
Thus, the patented materials can be used both in the development of catalysts as well as storage batteries or other energy types p
#Enhanced Live-Cell Structured Illumination Microscopy Provides More Detailed Understanding of Cell Processes Scientists can now watch dynamic biological processes with unprecedented clarity in living cells using new imaging techniques
developed by researchers at the Howard hughes medical institute's Janelia Research Campus. The new methods dramatically improve on the spatial resolution provided by structured illumination microscopy, one of the best imaging methods for seeing inside living cells.
The vibrant videos produced with the new technology show the movement and interactions of proteins as cells remodel their structural supports
or reorganize their membranes to take up molecules from outside the cell. Janelia group leader Eric Betzig
postdoctoral fellow Dong Li and their colleagues have added the two new technologies-both variations on SIM-to the set of tools available for super-resolution imaging.
"In traditional SIM, the sample under the lens is observed while it is illuminated by a pattern of light (more like a bar code than the light from a lamp).
Computer software then extracts the information in the moiré images and translates it into a three-dimensional, high-resolution reconstruction.
He says SIM has received not as much attention as other super-resolution methods largely because those other methods offer more dramatic gains in spatial resolution.
But he notes that SIM has offered always two advantages over alternative super-resolution methods including photoactivated localization microscopy (PALM),
SIM, however, is different.""I fell in love with SIM because of its speed and the fact that it took so much less light than the other methods,
"Betzig says. Betzig began working with SIM shortly after the death in 2011 of one of its pioneers, Mats Gustafsson,
who was a group leader at Janelia. Betzig was convinced already that SIM had the potential to generate significant insights into the inner workings of cells,
and he suspected that improving the technique's spatial resolution would go a long way toward increasing its use by biologists.
Gustafsson and graduate student Hesper Rego had achieved higher-resolution SIM with a variation called saturated depletion nonlinear SIM
but that method trades improvements in spatial resolution for harsher conditions and a loss of speed.
Saturated depletion enhances the resolution of SIM images by taking advantage of fluorescent protein labels that can be switched on and off with light.
or more to generate data for the final image. The principle is very similar to the way super-resolution in achieved in STED or a related method called RESOLFT,
"Instead, the new method, called patterned photoactivation nonlinear SIM, begins by switching on just a subset of fluorescent labels in a sample with a pattern of light."
The combined effect of those patterns leads to final images with 62-nanometer resolution--better than standard SIM and a threefold improvement over the limits imposed by the wavelength of light."
I have to take the data in a tenth of a second, or else it will smear out,
Patterned photoactivation nonlinear SIM captures the 25 images that go into a final reconstruction in about one-third of a second.
The team used patterned photoactivation nonlinear SIM to produce videos showing structural proteins break down and reassemble themselves as cells move
Betzig's team also reports in the Science paper that they can boost the spatial resolution of SIM to 84 nanometers by imaging with a commercially available microscope objective with an ultra-high numerical aperture.
by combining the high numerical-aperture approach with patterned photoactivatable nonlinear SIM, Betzig and his colleagues could follow two proteins at a time with higher resolution than the high numerical aperture approach offered on its own.
Betzig's team is continuing to develop their SIM technologies, and say further improvements are likely.
They are also eager to work with biologists to continue to explore potential applications and refine their techniques'usability.
For now, scientists who want to experiment with the new SIM methods can arrange to do so through Janelia's Advanced Imaging Center,
it should be fairly straightforward to make the SIM technologies accessible and affordable to other labs."Most of the magic is in the software, not the hardware,
#Researchers Develop New Microscopic Imaging Techniques to help Advance Next-Generation Nanotechnology The research focuses on leveraging powerful tabletop microscopes equipped with coherent beams of extreme-ultraviolet (EUV) light.
The University of Colorado approach promises quantitative full-field imaging with as much as a 20x improvement in spatial resolution,
more energy-efficient nanocircuit designs. etter imaging techniques are critical for all areas of science and advanced technology,
said Margaret Murnane, professor of Physics and Electrical and Computer engineering at the University of Colorado,
Boulder. abletop microscopes are needed for iterative design and optimization across a broad range of nanoscience and nanotechnology applications,
Although 10 nanometer (nm) spatial resolution was demonstrated, 25 nm is typical nowhere near the wavelength limit, according to the research team.
materials and biology present a formidable challenge using any imaging modality. Notable demonstrations aside, current X-ray, electron and optical microscopies are simply too cumbersome and slow to routinely image functioning systems in real space and time, severely limiting progress.
the wavelength of widely accessible lasers has been reduced by less than a factor of 4. The University of Colorado work employs coherent,
the University of Colorado team plans to demonstrate in the next two to five years coherent EUV and X-ray microscopes that produce real-time movies of functioning materials with less than 5 nm lateral
The team deep-ultraviolet and EUV laser-like source technology could be used for defect detection or other nanometrology applications either as a stand-alone solution or as an inline tool.
The EUV microscope could also provide high-contrast, low-damage, full-field, real-time imaging of functioning circuits and nanosystems,
among other fabrication application usages. any industries that harness nanotechnologies can benefit from better microscopes for iterative and smart designs,
Senior Science Director of Nanomanufacturing Materials and Processes at SRC. he resolution will only continue to improve as the illumination wavelengths decrease. w
This new technology may contribute to medical cost reduction while maintaining the quality of medical treatment.
This study was published in the online version of the academic journal Biomaterials on June 9, 2015.
A research group led by Tetsushi Taguchi, a MANA Scientist at the Biomaterials Unit, International Center for Materials Nanoarchitectonics (MANA),
NIMS, has developed tissue adhesive porous films that promote angiogenesis (formation of new blood vessels) without using growth factors.
This new technology may contribute to medical cost reduction while maintaining the quality of medical treatment without using growth factors that are expensive and prone to deactivation.
To promote angiogenesis in body parts where blood flow is poor due to diabetes, research has been conducted to develop materials that absorb growth factors
and gradually release them. Studies also have been carried out to combine stem cells that produce growth factors and materials.
to target legs of diabetes patients with poor blood flow and to effectively regenerate blood vessels.
This technology also may contribute to cost reduction in certain medical treatments. Based on these positive results
the research group intends to engage in collaborative studies with medical and industrial sectors, and aims to expand its activities in the field of regenerative medicine and developing medical devices s
#Harvard Researchers Develop New System for Producing Stable, Amorphous Nanoparticles from Wide Material Range Before Ibuprofen can relieve your headache,
it has to dissolve in your bloodstream. The problem is Ibuprofen, in its native form, isn particularly soluble.
Its rigid, crystalline structures the molecules are lined up like soldiers at roll call make it hard to dissolve in the bloodstream.
The key to making drugs by themselves more soluble is not to give the molecular soldiers time to fall in to their crystalline structures
Researchers from Harvard John A. Paulson School of engineering and Applied science (SEAS) have developed a new system that can produce stable, amorphous nanoparticles in large quantities that dissolve quickly.
But that not All the system is so effective that it can produce amorphous nanoparticles from a wide range of materials,
including for the first time, inorganic materials with a high propensity towards crystallization, such as table salt. These unstructured, inorganic nanoparticles have different electronic, magnetic and optical properties from their crystalized counterparts,
which could lead to applications in fields ranging from materials engineering to optics. David A. Weitz
Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics and Applied Physics and an associate faculty member of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard, describes the research in a paper published today in Science. his is a surprisingly simple way to make amorphous nanoparticles from almost any material,
The droplets are dried completely between one to three microseconds from the time they are sprayed, leaving behind the amorphous nanoparticle.
At first, the amorphous structure of the nanoparticles was said perplexing Esther Amstad, a former postdoctoral fellow in Weitzlab and current assistant professor at EPFL in Switzerland.
Amstad is the paper first author. Then, the team realized that the nebulizer supersonic speed was making the droplets evaporate much faster than expected. f youe wet
delaying the formation of crystals. These factors prevent crystallization in nanoparticles, even in materials that are highly prone to crystallization, such as table salt.
The amorphous nanoparticles are exceptionally stable against crystallization lasting at least seven months at room temperature. The next step, Amstad said,
is to characterize the properties of these new inorganic amorphous nanoparticles and explore potential applications. his system offers exceptionally good control over the composition,
structure, and size of particles, enabling the formation of new materials, said Amstad. It allows us to see
and manipulate the very early stages of crystallization of materials with high spatial and temporal resolution, the lack
of which had prevented the in depth study of some of the most prevalent inorganic biomaterials. This systems opens the door to understanding
Christian Holtze, Chinedum O. Osuji, Michael P. Brenner, the Glover Professor of Applied mathematics and Applied Physics and Professor of Physics,
and Frans Spaepen, the John C. and Helen F. Franklin Professor of Applied Physics. It was supported by the National Science Foundation,
#Inner Space of Carbon nanotubes Could act as a Template for Synthesis of Linear-Chain Nanodiamonds The inner space of carbon nanotubes can act as a template for the synthesis of nanodiamond-like carbon chains.
this templated polymerization approach paves the way for the design of novel one-dimensional nanomaterials. Nanosized materials such as nanowires offer unique properties that are completely distinct from those of the bulk materials.
However, one-dimensional nanostructures are difficult to synthesize. In an international cooperation Hisanori Shinohara from Nagoya University in Japan and his colleagues have developed a method that uses carbon nanotubes as a reaction vessel for the templated polymerization of linear-chain nanomaterials.
The idea was that during polymerization, the small precursor molecules would naturally adopt the one-dimensional structure of the tubes
only if their inner diameter is small enough. Larger diameters would offer too much space so that the polymerization could terminate
or become uncontrolled. By using this method, Shinohara and his colleagues were able to synthesize a one-dimensional nanodiamond polymeric structure by a relatively simple annealing technique.
They describe their approach:""The present template-based approach for the synthesis of linear-chain diamondoid polymers is entirely different from conventional chemical approaches."
"The scientists used diamantane, a 10-carbon cage structure, as a precursor molecule and building block for polymerization.
This molecule was brominated at either side so that, upon addition of iron nanoparticles, the bromine would be abstracted and a diradical formed.
In a normal chemical polymerization reaction, the formed radicals would abstract hydrogen for termination reactions, but:"
"To our great surprise, the radicals are recombined persistent and with each other inside the carbon nanotubes, "the authors write.
And:""Depending on the inner diameter of the carbon nanotubes, the inserted species can either be transformed into the linear-chain polymers or into amorphous carbon."
"As a result, the structures formed in the 1-nm-sized tubes were a polymeric chain of nanodiamondoids,
which could be visualized impressively by electron microscopy. To put it more colloquially, the formed carbon nanotubes filled with the nanodiamondoid polymer look like macaroni filled with spaghetti.
In order to extract the inner polymer, a solution-phase sonication/extraction can be applied, the group reports.
The big advantage of the new method is the simplicity and specificity of the formation of the one-dimensional nanostructured polymer chain.
This technique will certainly attract the attention of materials scientists s
#Researchers Demonstrate Breakthrough Method for Getting Nanoparticles to Self-Assemble The medium is the message.
Dr. Rafal Klajn of the Weizmann Institute Organic chemistry Department and his group have given new meaning to this maxim:
An innovative method they have demonstrated now for getting nanoparticles to self-assemble focuses on the medium in
which the particles are suspended; these assemblies can be used, among other things, for reversibly writing information.
This approach is an elegant alternative to present methods that require nanoparticles to be coated with light-sensitive molecules;
uncoated nanoparticles into a light-sensitive medium would be simpler, and the resulting system more efficient and durable than existing ones.
The nanoparticles then react to the change in acidity in their environment: It is this reaction that causes the particles to aggregate in the dark
This means that any nanoparticles that respond to acid a much larger group than those that respond to light can now potentially be manipulated into self-assembly.
By using light a favored means of generating nanoparticle self-assembly to control the reaction,
when and where the nanoparticles will aggregate. And since nanoparticles tend to have different properties
if they are floating freely or clustered together, the possibilities for creating new applications are nearly limitless.
For one, the particles do not seem to degrade over time a problem that plagues the coated nanoparticles. e ran one hundred cycles of writing
and rewriting with the nanoparticles in a gel-like medium what we call reversible information storage
although we used gold nanoparticles for our experiments, theoretically one could even use sand, as long as it was sensitive to changes in acidity.
In addition to durable ewritable paper, Klajn suggests that future applications of this method might include removing pollutants from water certain nanoparticles can aggregate around contaminants
#Nanoporous Gold Sponge Detects Pathogens Faster This novel technique enables sensitive DNA detection in compound biological samples e g.,
According to UC Davis researchers, these sponge-like nanoporous gold hold the potential for enabling new devices to detect agents responsible for causing disease in both plants
and humans. anoporous gold can be imagined as a porous metal sponge with pore sizes that are a thousand times smaller than the diameter of a human hair,
assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at UC Davis and the paperssenior author. hat happens is the debris in biological samples,
but the fiber-like nucleic acids that we want to detect can actually fit through them. It almost like a natural sieve. arly identification of disease biomarkers and pathogenic microbes is possible with the swift and sensitive detection of nucleic acids.
The existing sensor technologies generally need the nucleic acid to be purified. This would entail performing several steps
and require dedicated laboratory equipment, thereby hindering the sensorsapplication. The method demonstrated by the UC Davis team decreases the need for purification. o now we hope to have eliminated largely the need for extensive sample cleanup
Going forward, the team anticipates that their research will be useful in the progress of mini point-of-care diagnostic systems for clinical and agricultural applications. he applications of the sensor are quite broad ranging from detection of plant pathogens to disease biomarkers,
For instance, in human sepsis cases, the illness can be detected early on, thereby preventing any needless treatments as doctors can now establish bacterial contamination much more rapidly than ever before.
Similarly in agriculture, without the occurrence of any symptoms researchers can still detect if pathogens are present.
Pallavi Daggumati, Zimple Matharu, and Ling Wang in the Department of Electrical and Computer engineering at UC Davis were the other authors of the papers.
The UC Davis Research Investments in the Sciences and Engineering (RISE) program, the UC Lab Fees Research Program and the National Science Foundation provided the funding for this research.
RISE program promotes interdisciplinary research to find solutions for problems occurring in today world c
#Nanoporous Gold Sponge Detects Pathogens Faster A team of researchers from University of California, Davis has proved that nucleic acids can be detected using nanoporous gold,
a unique sensor coating material, in a mixture containing other biomolecules, thus beating most of the currently used detectors.
This novel technique enables sensitive DNA detection in compound biological samples e g.,, serum from whole blood.
Their findings have been published in two recent papers in Analytical Chemistry. According to UC Davis researchers, these sponge-like nanoporous gold hold the potential for enabling new devices to detect agents responsible for causing disease in both plants
and humans. anoporous gold can be imagined as a porous metal sponge with pore sizes that are a thousand times smaller than the diameter of a human hair,
said Erkin Seker, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering at UC Davis and the paperssenior author. hat happens is the debris in biological samples,
such as proteins, is too large to go through those pores, but the fiber-like nucleic acids that we want to detect can actually fit through them.
It almost like a natural sieve. Early identification of disease biomarkers and pathogenic microbes is possible with the swift and sensitive detection of nucleic acids.
The existing sensor technologies generally need the nucleic acid to be purified. This would entail performing several steps
and require dedicated laboratory equipment, thereby hindering the sensorsapplication. The method demonstrated by the UC Davis team decreases the need for purification. o now we hope to have eliminated largely the need for extensive sample cleanup,
which makes the process conducive to use in the field, Seker said. The outcome of their research was a swifter and highly efficient procedure,
which can be used in numerous settings. Going forward, the team anticipates that their research will be useful in the progress of mini point-of-care diagnostic systems for clinical and agricultural applications. he applications of the sensor are quite broad ranging from detection of plant pathogens to disease biomarkers
said Seker. For instance, in human sepsis cases, the illness can be detected early on, thereby preventing any needless treatments as doctors can now establish bacterial contamination much more rapidly than ever before.
Similarly, in agriculture, without the occurrence of any symptoms researchers can still detect if pathogens are present.
Pallavi Daggumati, Zimple Matharu, and Ling Wang in the Department of Electrical and Computer engineering at UC Davis were the other authors of the papers.
The UC Davis Research Investments in the Sciences and Engineering (RISE) program, the UC Lab Fees Research Program and the National Science Foundation provided the funding for this research.
RISE program promotes interdisciplinary research to find solutions for problems occurring in today world u
#Nanoscientists Convert Sunlight into Liquid fuel Using Nature and Technology Imagine creating artificial plants that make gasoline
and natural gas using only sunlight. And imagine using those fuels to heat our homes or run our cars without adding any greenhouse gases to the atmosphere.
By combining nanoscience and biology, researchers led by scientists at University of California, Berkeley, have taken a big step in that direction.
Peidong Yang, a professor of chemistry at Berkeley and co-director of the school's Kavli Energy Nanosciences Institute, leads a team that has created an artificial leaf that produces methane
the primary component of natural gas, using a combination of semiconducting nanowires and bacteria. The research, detailed in the online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences in August, builds on a similar hybrid system, also recently devised by Yang and his colleagues,
that yielded butanol, a component in gasoline, and a variety of biochemical building blocks. The research is a major advance toward synthetic photosynthesis,
a type of solar power based on the ability of plants to transform sunlight, carbon dioxide and water into sugars.
Instead of sugars, however, synthetic photosynthesis seeks to produce liquid fuels that can be stored for months or years and distributed through existing energy infrastructure.
In a roundtable discussion on his recent breakthroughs and the future of synthetic photosynthesis, Yang said his hybrid inorganic/biological systems give researchers new tools to study photosynthesis
--and learn its secrets.""We're good at generating electrons from light efficiently, but chemical synthesis always limited our systems in the past.
One purpose of this experiment was to show we could integrate bacterial catalysts with semiconductor technology.
This lets us understand and optimize a truly synthetic photosynthesis system, "he told The Kavli Foundation.
The stakes are high.""Burning fossil fuels is putting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere much faster than natural photosynthesis can take it out.
Moore is a professor of chemistry and biochemistry at Arizona State university, where he previously headed the Center for Bioenergy & Photosynthesis. Ultimately,
researchers hope to create an entirely synthetic system that is more robust and efficient than its natural counterpart.
especially the catalysts that convert water and carbon dioxide into sugars at room temperatures.""This is not about mimicking nature directly
or literally,"said Ted Sargent, the vice-dean of research for the Faculty of Applied science and Engineering at University of Toronto.
"Instead, it is about learning nature's guidelines, its rules on how to make a compellingly efficient and selective catalyst,
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