Calcium ions are ubiquitous signalling molecules in all multicellular organisms, where they mediate diverse aspects of intracellular and extracellular communication over widely varying temporal and spatial scales. Though techniques to map calcium-related activity at a high resolution by optical means are well established, there is currently no reliable method to measure calcium dynamics over [...]
The Nano4 project takes fast, reliable and low-cost molecular point of care (POC) diagnostic tools down to the nano-scale, offering better healthcare outcomes for patients. Medics working in migratory hotspots, in countries with low laboratory infrastructure or in other demanding situations often need to be able to screen large populations quickly, in a non-centralised [...]
Most tumors contain regions of low oxygen concentration where cancer therapies based on the action of reactive oxygen species are ineffective. Now, American scientists have developed a hybrid nanomaterial that releases a free-radical-generating prodrug inside tumor cells upon thermal activation. As they report in the journal Angewandte Chemie, the free radicals destroy the cell [...]
According to Plato and Aristotle, philosophy begins in wonder. You start to question the shape of the clouds or why the ants are working in hives, the next thing you know you already contemplate about geography or social psychology. Examining the “natural” order of things helps us explain the world, see our environment in [...]
Cells and the machinery they encase are soft matter - shape-shifting multicomponent systems with an overwhelming richness of forms. But, these squishy packages are hard targets for potential therapeutic and diagnostic applications that exploit nanomaterials, from quantum dots that light up specific tissues to nanocages carrying drug payloads. The problem, according to a team [...]
Researchers from CIC-nanoGUNE (San Sebastián, Spain), in collaboration with the Donostia International Physics Center (San Sebastián, Spain), Materials Physics Center (CFM, CSIC-UPV/EHU, San Sebastián, Spain) and University of Oviedo demonstrate a new way to strongly couple infrared light and molecular vibrations, by utilizing phonon polariton nanoresonators made of hexagonal boron nitride, a Van der [...]
Perhaps the strangest prediction of quantum theory is entanglement, a phenomenon whereby two distant objects become intertwined in a manner that defies both classical physics and a “common-sense” understanding of reality. In 1935, Albert Einstein expressed his concern over this concept, referring to it as “spooky action at a distance”. Nowadays, entanglement is considered [...]
The term ‘DNA origami’ refers to a method for the design and self-assembly of complex molecular structures with nanometer precision. The technique exploits the base-pairing interactions between single-stranded DNA molecules of known sequence to generate intricate three-dimensional nanostructures with predefined shapes in arbitrarily large numbers. The method has great potential for a [...]
Introduction Surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy (SERS) uses both roughened metal surfaces and nanoparticles in colloidal solutions to enhance the Raman signal. Recent research has also had a focus on zinc oxide nanostructures. Nanoparticles are more commonly used due to the fact they can be easily made in the lab whereas roughened surfaces require complicated lithography [...]
Researchers at The University of Manchester and Shandong University in China have developed a nanoscale transistor that will be one step closer to enabling the creation of flexible televisions, phones, and tablets as well as ‘truly wearable’ smart tech. The international team has created an ultrafast, nanoscale transistor – called a thin film transistor [...]
