In a quest to make more realistic, safer, and personalizable tissue replacement implants, bacterial cellulose nanofibers are being looked on as a viable material. They are naturally biocompatible, biodegradable, withstand heat well, and have physical properties similar to many of our tissues, when composed into larger objects. Bacterial cellulose nanofibers are produced by aerobic bacteria […]
Tag: Nanomedicine
Nanofiber Dressings Speed Up Healing of Serious Wounds
Researchers at Harvard University have come up with two new wound dressings that promote healing without relying on growth factors, cells, or even artificial scaffolds. Instead, natural proteins that are found in soy and human fetus cells are made to speed up the body’s natural healing processes, including performing tricks that only fetal tissue is […]
Scientists Develop Technique to Mass Produce Drug Delivery Nanovesicles
Numerous technologies that use and help nanovesicles to deliver drugs to disease sites have been developed over the past few years, as any regular reader of Medgadget can attest to. We’re now at a stage when figuring out how to manufacture so-called extracellular nanovesicles (ENV) in millions, properly targeted, and on demand is a major […]
Artificial Photoreceptors Return Vision to Blind Mice
Blindness in many people is caused by diseased rod and cone cells within the retina that are responsible for turning light into electric signals. If these photoreceptor cells don’t function correctly, even an otherwise perfectly healthy eye won’t produce quality vision. There are technologies out there that bypass photoreceptors entirely, but that involves bulky technology […]
Magnetic Nanoparticles to Stop Internal Bleeding
Researchers from ITMO University in St. Petersburg, Russia have developed magnetic nanoparticles to control internal bleeding, which can be localized at a bleeding site in the body using external magnetic fields. Internal bleeding is a medical emergency, and researchers are working to develop more effective therapies that are targeted at the bleeding site and that […]
Nanotechnology for Biological Sample Preservation Without Refrigeration
Scientists at Washington University in St. Louis have developed a method to preserve protein biomarkers in clinical samples, without the need for refrigeration. The technique relies on growing molecules called metal-organic frameworks around the proteins in the sample, potentially enabling clinicians in remote and low-resource settings to send patient samples long distances for analysis, using […]
Nanoplasmonic Sensor Can Count Dividing Cells and Detect Biomolecules
Researchers at the Okinawa Institute of Science and Technology in Japan have developed a nanoplasmonic sensor that can measure cell division over extended periods and detect biomolecules with high sensitivity. The device has potential as a diagnostic test for disease biomarkers, or as a research tool to screen the effects of therapeutic molecules on cell […]
Microfluidic Device to Capture Tumor-Specific Extracellular Vesicles
Scientists at Massachusetts General Hospital have developed a microfluidic device to capture tumor-derived extracellular vesicles from patient blood samples. The device paves the way for minimally invasive characterization and monitoring of difficult-to-treat cancers, such as glioblastoma. Assessing biomarkers present in the blood is a promising way to characterize and keep track of tumors, but some […]
Complex Nanoparticles for Theranostic Applications Developed At Sandia
Researchers at Sandia National Laboratories has developed a way of engineering multi-purpose nanomaterials, for imaging and even therapeutics, made of metal-organic framework materials (MOFs). MOFs are composite molecules made of metal nodes and carbon rids that link them. They have interesting characteristics, such as long-term multi-color fluorescence, can be formed into different shapes with huge surface […]
Nano-CT Scanner and Staining Technique Allow for High-Resolution 3D Histology
Researchers at the Technical University of Munich have developed a nano-CT scanning technique. When coupled with a new staining technique, their nano-CT scanner can take extremely high-resolution scans of intact tissue samples, such as tumors. The new method allows clinicians to examine soft tissue samples without the need for sectioning or toxic stains. At present, […]
Nanoparticle Material Melts Away to Reveal Drug Cargo
At the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, researchers have developed a new set of materials designed to deliver drugs inside the body and melt away when illuminated with light. The materials are made of a polymer seeded with nano-sized gold shell nanoparticles. When light from a near-infrared (NIR) laser is applied to the material, it melts and […]
Tiny Light-Activated Gold-Covered Nanowires Can Make Neurons Fire
Researchers at the University of Chicago have developed light-activated nanowires that can stimulate neurons to fire when they are exposed to light. The researchers hope that the nanowires could help in understanding complex brain circuitry, and they may also be useful in treating brain disorders. Optogenetics, which involves genetically modifying neurons so that they are […]
Upconversion Nanoparticles Deliver Light Deep Into Brain to Power Optogenetic Therapies
Optogenetics is a powerful method developed over the past few years that lets scientists use light to activate specific genetically modified neurons within the brain. This technology still has a lot of time left in the lab before it can help to address human diseases, but that reality may be a bit closer thanks to […]
Nanomachines Create Clots Inside Vessels Feeding Cancer Tumors
Researchers from Arizona State University and National Center for Nanoscience and Technology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have developed a remarkable new way of killing tumors. They’ve developed robot-like nanoscale devices that cling to the walls of tumor vessels, release a clotting agent, and block the tumor from receiving nutrients. These nanorobots, which consist […]
Machine Learning for Building Personalized Cancer Nanomedicines: Interview with Dr. Daniel Heller
Researchers at the Sloan Kettering Institute and the Weill Cornell Graduate School of Medical Sciences in New York have developed a machine learning approach to design personalized nanoparticle therapies for cancer. Personalized cancer therapies aim to provide a treatment that is tailored to the genetic makeup of a patient’s tumor. They can still cause side […]
Paper Towels Seeded with Carbon Nanotubes Work as Disposable Sensors
Cheap, high-quality specialized sensors can be difficult to create for a number of reasons, because of a reliance on expensive materials, complicated functionality, or inherent reliability issues. Researchers at University of Washington have been working on developing mechanical movement sensors that are so cheap that they can be thrown away after every use. The main structural […]
Injection Assembles into Nanocarrier Implant for Long-Term Delivery of Nanomedicines
A good deal of the field of nanomedicine is focused on delivering drugs to specific sites within the body, such as specific organs or cancer tumors. While many nanomedicines have well developed targeting mechanisms, they often are best delivered a small amount at a time. Yet, continuous slow-release of nanomedicines has typically required the use […]
Flexible, Breathable Electronic Tattoo Measures Vital Signs
A team of Japanese scientists has developed a way of creating breathable on-skin electronics that can stretch while continuing to function and that don’t cause any inflammation on the skin. These tattoo-like electronics have now been worn by volunteers for up to a week, with them reporting that they don’t even feel the presence of […]
Bursting Oxygen-loaded Microbubbles Near Solid Tumors Can Enhance Radiation Therapy
Scientists at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia have developed a new technique to improve the effectiveness of radiation therapy for solid tumors. Their method employs nanotechnology in the form of oxygen-filled microbubbles that can be burst using focused ultrasound when they are near a tumor. The majority of solid tumors are oxygen-deficient as they quickly […]
Skin Patch Controls Blood Sugar Without Finger Pricks or Injections
Researchers at National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB) have developed a special patch for Type 2 diabetics that helps to control glucose levels in a novel way. The technology, once fully proven out and optimized, may work for days or even weeks at a time. The patch is made of […]