News from the NNI Community - Research Advances Funded by Agencies Participating in the NNI

Scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine report that they have created a tiny, nano-size container that can slip inside cells and deliver protein-based medicines and gene therapies of any size — even hefty ones attached to a gene-editing tool called CRISPR. If their creation — constructed of a biodegradable polymer — passes more laboratory testing, it could offer a way to efficiently ferry larger medical compounds into specifically selected target cells.

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have adapted a cryogenic electron microscope to visualize a soft material's atomic structure while keeping it intact. The researchers made nanosheets in solution from short protein-like molecules, called peptoids, that could advance a number of applications, such as synthetic, disease-specific antibodies and self-repairing membranes or tissue.

Scientists at the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory have adapted a cryogenic electron microscope to visualize a soft material's atomic structure while keeping it intact. The researchers made nanosheets in solution from short protein-like molecules, called peptoids, that could advance a number of applications, such as synthetic, disease-specific antibodies and self-repairing membranes or tissue.

Researchers at the University of Delaware have shown for the first time that the old carbon found on the seafloor can be directly linked to submicron graphite particles emanating from hydrothermal vents. To conduct their study, the researchers used samples of nanoparticles from five different hydrothermal vent sites collected during a research expedition to the East Pacific Rise vent field in the Pacific Ocean. Then the researchers analyzed the samples under scanning and transmission microscopes at the National Center for Earth and Environmental Nanotechnology Infrastructure (NanoEarth) at Virginia Tech.

Researchers at the University of Delaware have shown for the first time that the old carbon found on the seafloor can be directly linked to submicron graphite particles emanating from hydrothermal vents. To conduct their study, the researchers used samples of nanoparticles from five different hydrothermal vent sites collected during a research expedition to the East Pacific Rise vent field in the Pacific Ocean. Then the researchers analyzed the samples under scanning and transmission microscopes at the National Center for Earth and Environmental Nanotechnology Infrastructure (NanoEarth) at Virginia Tech.

Metalenses—flat surfaces that use nanostructures to focus light—are poised to revolutionize microscopes, cameras, sensors, and displays. But so far, most of the lenses have been about the size of a piece of glitter. Now, researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences have developed an all-glass, centimeter-scale metalens in the visible spectrum that can be manufactured using conventional chip fabrication methods.

Metalenses—flat surfaces that use nanostructures to focus light—are poised to revolutionize microscopes, cameras, sensors, and displays. But so far, most of the lenses have been about the size of a piece of glitter. Now, researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences have developed an all-glass, centimeter-scale metalens in the visible spectrum that can be manufactured using conventional chip fabrication methods.

Researchers at Rice and Swansea universities have developed a technique to use inexpensive newsprint harvested from newspapers to grow carbon nanotubes for industry. More specifically, the scientists have shown that a particular kind of newsprint can be treated to serve as a three-dimensional substrate for single-walled carbon nanotube growth.

Researchers at Rice and Swansea universities have developed a technique to use inexpensive newsprint harvested from newspapers to grow carbon nanotubes for industry. More specifically, the scientists have shown that a particular kind of newsprint can be treated to serve as a three-dimensional substrate for single-walled carbon nanotube growth.

Perovskite nanocrystals hold promise for improving a wide variety of optoelectronic devices, but problems with their durability still limit the material's broad commercial use. Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have demonstrated a novel approach aimed at addressing the material's durability problem: encasing the perovskite inside a double-layer protection system made from plastic and silica.