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

Date Published
(Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy)

Researchers at Columbia University and the University of California San Diego have, for the first time, combined an optical nano-probe with magnetic nano-imaging to simultaneously examine electrical, magnetic, and optical properties of quantum materials.

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health)

Researchers at The Ohio State University have developed a way to prop up a struggling immune system to enable its fight against sepsis, a deadly condition resulting from the body's extreme reaction to infection. This work combined two primary types of technology: using vitamins as the main component in making lipid nanoparticles, and using those nanoparticles to capitalize on natural cell processes in the creation of a new antibacterial drug.

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health)

Researchers at The Ohio State University have developed a way to prop up a struggling immune system to enable its fight against sepsis, a deadly condition resulting from the body's extreme reaction to infection. This work combined two primary types of technology: using vitamins as the main component in making lipid nanoparticles, and using those nanoparticles to capitalize on natural cell processes in the creation of a new antibacterial drug.

(Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and the Army Research Office)

Researchers at Iowa State University have developed new nanoscale technology to image and measure more of the stresses and strains on materials under high pressures. The technology consists of a series of nanoscale sensors inserted into diamonds, which are used to exert high pressures on tiny material samples. The technology allows researchers to image, measure, and calculate six different stresses – a more comprehensive and realistic measure of the effects of high pressure on materials.

(Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Science Foundation, and the Army Research Office)

Researchers at Iowa State University have developed new nanoscale technology to image and measure more of the stresses and strains on materials under high pressures. The technology consists of a series of nanoscale sensors inserted into diamonds, which are used to exert high pressures on tiny material samples. The technology allows researchers to image, measure, and calculate six different stresses – a more comprehensive and realistic measure of the effects of high pressure on materials.

(Funded by the National Science Foundation)

Researchers at Penn State and New York University have developed a device to quickly capture and identify various strains of viruses. The device uses arrays of nanotubes that capture different viruses according to their size and uses Raman spectroscopy to identify the viruses based on their individual vibrations. Because of its size and cheapness, such a device could be useful in a doctor’s office and in locations where disease outbreaks occur.

(Funded by the National Science Foundation)

Researchers at Penn State and New York University have developed a device to quickly capture and identify various strains of viruses. The device uses arrays of nanotubes that capture different viruses according to their size and uses Raman spectroscopy to identify the viruses based on their individual vibrations. Because of its size and cheapness, such a device could be useful in a doctor’s office and in locations where disease outbreaks occur.

(Funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health)

Every year, a lack of vaccination leads to about 1.5 million preventable deaths, primarily in developing nations. One factor that makes vaccination campaigns in those nations more difficult is that there is little infrastructure for storing medical records, so there is often no easy way to determine who needs a particular vaccine. MIT researchers have now developed a novel way to record a patient’s vaccination history: storing the data in a pattern of dye, invisible to the naked eye, that is delivered under the skin at the same time as the vaccine. The researchers showed that their new dye, which consists of nanocrystals called quantum dots, can remain for at least five years under the skin, where it emits near-infrared light that can be detected by a specially equipped smartphone.

(Funded by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health)

Every year, a lack of vaccination leads to about 1.5 million preventable deaths, primarily in developing nations. One factor that makes vaccination campaigns in those nations more difficult is that there is little infrastructure for storing medical records, so there is often no easy way to determine who needs a particular vaccine. MIT researchers have now developed a novel way to record a patient’s vaccination history: storing the data in a pattern of dye, invisible to the naked eye, that is delivered under the skin at the same time as the vaccine. The researchers showed that their new dye, which consists of nanocrystals called quantum dots, can remain for at least five years under the skin, where it emits near-infrared light that can be detected by a specially equipped smartphone.

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation)

Scientists have developed a new gene-therapy technique by transforming human cells into mass producers of nano-sized particles full of genetic material that has the potential to reverse disease processes. Though the research was intended as a proof of concept, the experimental therapy slowed tumor growth and prolonged survival in mice with gliomas, which constitute about 80 percent of malignant brain tumors in humans.