Cells contain thousands of messenger RNA molecules, which carry copies of DNA’s genetic instructions to the rest of the cell. MIT engineers have now developed a way to visualize these molecules in higher resolution than previously possible in intact tissues, allowing researchers to precisely map the location of RNA throughout cells.
Key to the new technique is expanding the tissue before imaging it. By making the sample physically larger, it can be imaged with very high resolution using ordinary microscopes commonly found in research labs.
“Now we can image RNA with great spatial precision, thanks to the expansion process, and we also can do it more easily in large intact tissues,” says Ed Boyden, an associate professor of biological engineering and brain and cognitive sciences at MIT, a member of MIT’s Media Lab and McGovern Institute for Brain Research, and the senior author of a paper describing the technique in the July 4, 2016 issue of Nature Methods (“Nanoscale imaging of RNA with expansion microscopy”).
Image credit: Yosuke Bando, Fei Chen, Dawen Cai, Ed Boyden, and Young Gyu
Recent News
Computer Model Determines Ideal Conditions to Develop Nanodiamonds
Nanodiamonds - the tiny crystalline carbon - have fascinating chemical and surface properties and hold promising applications in quantum computing, optoelectronics, and medicine. These materials measure hundreds of thousands of times smaller than a [...]
Frank Boehm contributes to ‘Immune Aspects of Biopharmaceuticals and Nanomedicines’ – CRC Press
Immune Aspects of Biopharmaceuticals and Nanomedicines 1st Edition Raj Bawa, Janos Szebeni, Thomas J Webster, Gerald F. Audette The enormous advances in the immunology of biotherapeutics and nanomedicines in the past two decades have [...]
Safety Panel Fears Soyuz Failure Could Exacerbate Commercial Crew Safety Concerns
LAS CRUCES, N.M. — Members of an independent NASA safety panel said they were worried that the Oct. 11 Soyuz launch failure could make safety concerns with the agency's commercial crew program even worse. [...]
Canadian astronaut says human space travel will advance ‘sooner than you think’
Canadian astronaut Col. Chris Hadfield (Ret.) on Friday said that human travel to space will happen sooner than we think, adding that the first destination will likely be a return trip to the moon. [...]
Ultrasmall targeted nanoparticles with engineered antibody fragments as an anti-cancer weapon
Antibody-based imaging of a particularly aggressive form of breast cancer is undergoing clinical trials worldwide, but the path from trial to application is being hampered by a major obstacle: safety. Concerns stem from inefficient [...]
New Method Allows Harvesting of 2D Materials in Minutes
Following the discovery of graphene in 2003, there has been considerable interest in other types of 2D materials. However, splitting a bulk crystal material into 2D flakes for use in electronics has proven hard [...]
Cybersecurity isn’t being taken seriously enough: MIT professor
The digital economy is set to unlock tremendous economic value for countries over time. But a common setback for the use of various new technologies is their vulnerability to hackers. That's because companies and [...]
Other published works by Frank Boehm
Frank Boehm (NanoApps Medical CEO) and Angelika Domschke contributed the chapter : “Application of a Conceptual Nanomedical Platform to Facilitate the Mapping of the Human Brain: Survey of Cognitive Functions and Implications”. The book [...]
Nanomedical Device and Systems Design: Challenges, Possibilities, Visions now available to rent on Kindle
To accommodate students who wish to read the book at an affordable cost, Nanomedical Device and Systems Design: Challenges, Possibilities, Visions by Frank Boehm (CEO NanoApps Medical Inc.) is available to rent on Kindle. This book benefits [...]
Why Cyber-Criminals Are Attacking Healthcare — And How To Stop Them
The last five years has seen a surge of attacks on the healthcare industry, with the largest breaches impacting as many as 80 million people. In July this year, it was revealed that 150,000 [...]
A new era in the quest for dark matter
Since the 1970s, astronomers and physicists have been gathering evidence for the presence in the universe of dark matter: a mysterious substance that manifests itself through its gravitational pull. However, despite much effort, none [...]
The Largest Event on Graphene Nanotubes is Open to the Public for the First Time
The Nanoaugmented Materials Industry Summit (NAUM) 2018 in Shanghai on October 31 will gather the world’s leading companies who use and apply graphene nanotubes to share exciting results. This year the event is opening [...]
Simulations show new phenomenon with nanopore DNA sequencing
Any truck operator knows that hydraulics do the heavy lifting. Water does the work because it's nearly incompressible at normal scales. But things behave strangely in nanotechnology, the control of materials at the scale [...]
A human enzyme can biodegrade graphene
Myeloperoxidase - an enzyme naturally found in our lungs - can biodegrade pristine graphene, according to the latest discovery of Graphene Flagship partners in CNRS, University of Strasbourg (France), Karolinska Institute (Sweden) and University [...]
A new weapon in the battle against cancer – Artificial Intelligence
In today’s hospitals and healthcare clinics, a new doctor’s new assistant is now often on the job — in the form of artificial intelligence. Whether it’s analyzing medical images or guiding robots that assist [...]
Healthcare Cybersecurity Is a Top 2019 Executive Challenge
Healthcare cybersecurity will be one of the top 10 challenges, issues, and/or opportunities facing healthcare executives next year, according to a new poll by the Healthcare Executive Group (HCEG). Healthcare cybersecurity covers such issues [...]
Nanotherapy offers hope in treating drug-resistant renal cell carcinoma
A research team has developed a nano-platform technology that works in combination with existing chemotherapeutic drugs that may reverse drug-resistance in renal cell carcinoma. Drug resistance to chemotherapy is a significant clinical and financial [...]
The Theranos deception
Elizabeth Holmes was just 19 years old when she dropped out of Stanford University with a dream of creating a company that would revolutionize blood testing. As we first reported last May, Holmes founded [...]
LAUNCH.nano: MIT.nano Grand Opening celebration, Oct. 4, 2018
After six years of design and construction, MIT.nano will celebrate the completion of the facility at a Grand Opening Event on Oct. 4. Please join us for a day of activities including a symposium [...]
Scientists Use Light to Control Nanobots
If nanotechnology has one clear image in the collective pop-culture consciousness, it is that of nanorobots, nanoscale machines capable of performing mechanical functions. When considering the potential of such a technology, the more astute may [...]
10 Steps to Adopting Artificial Intelligence in Your Business
Artificial intelligence (AI) is clearly a growing force in the technology industry. Chatbots and virtual assistants are becoming a key part of new products, and robots are taking center stage at conferences and showing [...]
Arguing the Pros and Cons of Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare
In what seems like the blink of an eye, mentions of artificial intelligence have become ubiquitous in the healthcare industry. From deep learning algorithms that can read CT scans faster than humans to natural [...]
International Conference On Nanomedicine And Nanobiotechnology – ICONAN Rome 2018
The International Conference On Nanomedicine And Nanobiotechnology is an annual event. It hosts high-profile plenary speakers, world-class researchers, oral and poster presentations, workshops, sponsor exhibits and afterworks. It is a great opportunity to share [...]
Australian Scientists Develop Nanotechnology To Purify Water
SYDNEY, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News, app - 14th Sep, 2018 ) :Scientists in Australia have developed a ground-breaking new way to strip impurities from waste water, with the research set to have massive [...]
A new scientific field: Quantum metamaterials
Two teams of scientists from the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology have collaborated to conduct groundbreaking research leading to the development of a new and innovative scientific field: Quantum Metamaterials. The findings are presented [...]
Using biosensors to deliver personalized doses of antibiotics
A team of eight EPFL students has come up with a portable biosensor that can measure the amount of vancomycin in a patient's blood stream, enabling doctors to better control the dosage and reduce [...]
Transparent high-resolution EEG array allows brain imaging
Researchers have developed a see-through, dual-layered, mesh EEG device which is capable of measuring the electrical activity of individual neurons… Researchers from Boston Children’s Hospital and Northeastern University developed a ‘see-through’ EEG device to [...]
Leave A Comment