(Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. National Science Foundation)
Scientists from the University of Oklahoma and Northwestern University have shown that adding a crystalized molecular layer to quantum dots made of perovskite prevents them from darkening or blinking. Quantum dots, which are nanoparticles that have unique optical and electronic properties, usually fade out after 10–20 minutes of use. The crystal coverings developed in this study extend the continuous light emission of quantum dots to more than 12 hours with virtually no blinking. According to Yitong Dong, the scientist who led this study, these findings pave the way for the future design of quantum emitters – devices that emit single photons on demand, with applications in quantum computing.

(Funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Defense)
Using an approach called DNA origami, scientists at Caltech have developed a technique that could lead to cheaper, reusable biomarker sensors for quickly detecting proteins in bodily fluids, eliminating the need to send samples out to lab centers for testing. DNA origami enables long strands of DNA to fold, through self-assembly, into molecular structures at the nanoscale. In this study, DNA origami was used to create a lilypad-like structure – a flat, circular surface about 100 nanometers in diameter, tethered by a DNA linker to a gold electrode. Both the lilypad and the electrode have short DNA strands available to bind with an analyte, a molecule of interest in solution – whether that be a molecule of DNA, a protein, or an antibody.

(Funded by the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. National Science Foundation)
Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania, Rutgers University, and East China University of Science and Technology in Shanghai have shown that a combination of messenger RNA (mRNA) and a new lipid nanoparticle could help heal damaged lungs. The researchers matched up mRNA with just one unique lipid nanoparticle – ionizable amphiphilic Janus dendrimers – which are organ-specific. When it reaches the lung, the mRNA instructs the immune system to create transforming growth factor beta, a signaling molecule that is used to repair tissue. “This research marks the birth of a new mRNA delivery platform,” said 2023 Nobel laureate Drew Weissman, a co-author of the study. “While using other lipid nanoparticles works great to prevent infectious diseases, … this new platform does not have to be stored at such extremely cold temperatures and is even easier to produce.”

(Funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health)
Using the nanostructures and microstructures found on Morpho butterfly wings, scientists at the University of California San Diego have developed a simple and inexpensive way to analyze cancerous tissues. Fibrosis, the accumulation of fibrous tissue, is a key feature of many diseases, including cancer, and evaluating the extent of fibrosis in a biopsy sample can help determine whether a patient’s cancer is in an early or advanced stage. The researchers discovered that by placing a biopsy sample on top of a Morpho butterfly wing and viewing it under a standard microscope, they can assess whether a tumor’s structure indicates early- or late-stage cancer – without the need for stains or costly imaging machines.

(Funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation)
Researchers from Oregon State University, The Ohio State University, and the Southern University of Science and Technology in Shenzhen, China, have helped characterize a novel electrocatalyst developed by collaborators at Yale University and helped explain its improved efficiency for deriving methanol from carbon dioxide. The researchers’ dual-site catalyst is the result of combining two different catalytic sites at adjacent locations, separated by about 2 nanometers, on carbon nanotubes. The new design increases the methanol production rate, and less of the electricity used to catalyze the reaction is wasted. “The hybrid catalyst was found to exhibit unprecedented high catalytic efficiencies, nearly 1.5 times higher than observed before,” said Zhenxing Feng, one of the scientists involved in this study.