(Funded by the National Science Foundation, the U.S. Department of Defense, and the National Institutes of Health)
Researchers at the University of California San Diego have developed a platform for studying how nanoscale growing surfaces can impact cellular behavior. While previous studies have shown how surface structures can change cellular shape, little is known about their specific effects on cell metabolism. The research team found that cells grown on engineered nanopillar surfaces show dramatically different metabolic profiles than cells not grown on such surfaces. Also, the researchers found that growing cells on different engineered nanopillar surfaces could change how cells produce and modify lipids, the primary components of cell membranes.

(Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Science Foundation)
Researchers from the University of North Carolina Charlotte and the U.S. Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory have developed an innovative computational framework for modeling multifunctional RNA nucleic acid nanoparticles. By integrating small and wide-angle x-ray scattering data with data-driven molecular dynamics simulations, the researchers developed a methodology for studying multistranded RNA nucleic acid nanoparticles in their solution-state environments. Small-angle x-ray scattering–Molecular Dynamics (SAXS–MD) guides simulations toward biologically meaningful conformations, addressing the limitations of traditional unconstrained molecular dynamics simulations.

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health)
Researchers at Rice University have developed an innovative imaging platform that promises to improve our understanding of cellular structures at the nanoscale. This platform offers significant advancements in super-resolution microscopy, enabling fast and precise three-dimensional (3D) imaging of multiple cellular structures. By integrating an angled light sheet, a nanoprinted microfluidic system, and advanced computational tools, the platform significantly improves imaging precision and speed, allowing for clearer visualization of how different cellular structures interact at the nanoscale.

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health)
Nanoparticles have transformed how mRNA vaccines and therapeutics are delivered by allowing them to travel safely through the body, reach target cells and release their contents efficiently. At the heart of these nanoparticles are ionizable lipids, special molecules that can switch between charged and neutral states depending on their surroundings. Now, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania have used an iterative process to find the ideal structure for the ionizable lipid. By borrowing the idea of directed evolution, a technique used in both chemistry and biology that mimics the process of natural selection, the researchers combined precision with rapid output to achieve their ideal “ionizable lipid recipe.”

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health)
Copper plays a key role in the growth and development of cells. Because cancer cells grow and multiply more rapidly than non-cancer cells, they have a significantly higher need for copper ions. Restricting their access to copper ions could be a new therapeutic approach. The problem is that it has, so far, not been possible to develop a system that binds copper ions with sufficient affinity to “take them away” from copper-binding biomolecules. Now, researchers from Stanford University School of Medicine and the Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research in Mainz, Germany, have successfully developed such a system, which ensures that individual peptide molecules aggregate into nanofibers once they are inside the tumor cells. In this form, the nanofiber surfaces have many copper-binding sites in the right spatial orientation to be able to grasp copper ions.