The development of new methods that use engineered nanomaterials to transport drugs and release them directly into cells holds great potential in this area. And while several such drug-delivery systems have won approval for clinical use, they have been hampered by size limitations and ineffectiveness in accurately targeting tissues. Now, researchers at UCLA have developed a new and potentially far more effective means of targeted drug delivery using nanotechnology.

Virginia Commonwealth University researchers have identified the molecular mechanisms at play for the non-additive wetting free energies at chemically heterogeneous surfaces.

One of the approved Research Units deals with novel synthesis methods in chemistry, another works on "quantum diamonds".

The enormous changes with respect to how we handle and consume energy and the impact on the environment are of great concern not only to us as scientists, but also to all of us as responsible citizen. Therefore, the PhD students of the International Doctorate Program NanoBioTechnology had the wish to establish a discussion with experts from relevant fields to get a deep insight into the technical, economic and social preconditions necessary for the creation of a truly sustainable energy supply system.

Miniature architectural forms - some no larger than viruses - have been constructed through a revolutionary technique known as DNA origami. Now, Hao Yan, Yan Liu and their colleagues at ASU's Biodesign Institute have expanded the capability of this method to construct arbitrary, two- and three-dimensional shapes, mimicking those commonly found in nature.

A leading nanotechnology scientist has raised questions over a billion dollar industry by boldly claiming that there is a limit to how small nanotechnology materials can be mass produced. He says that you cannot mass produce structures with a diameter of three nanometres or less using a top-down approach.

A Purdue University biochemist has demonstrated a process using nanotechnology to better assess whether cancer drugs hit their targets, which may help reduce drug side effects.

Chemotherapy drug resistance contributes to treatment failure in more than 90 percent of metastatic cancers. Overcoming this hurdle would significantly improve cancer survival rates. Dean Ho, of Northwestern University, believes a tiny carbon particle called a nanodiamond may offer an effective drug delivery solution for hard-to-treat cancers.

A multidisciplinary team of investigators at Harvard and MIT have created a new device that can detect single cancer cells in a blood sample, potentially allowing doctors to quickly determine whether cancer has spread from its original site. The microfluidic device is about the size of a dime, and could also detect cancer-causing viruses such as hepatitis B and C and the human papilloma virus.

Yu Huang, an assistant professor of materials science and engineering at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, and her research team have proposed and demonstrated a new approach to producing nanocrystals with predictable shapes by utilizing surfactants, biomolecules that can bind selectively to certain facets of the crystals' exposed surfaces.

The effectiveness of optical imaging processes can be significantly improved with suitable dyes used as contrast agents. Now, researchers have introduced a novel contrast agent that marks tumor cells in vitro. The dye is a phosphorescent ruthenium complex incorporated into nanoparticles of a metal-organic coordination polymer, which allows an extraordinarily high level of dye loading.

An agreement of cooperation with investment company Nanostart AG, winner of the open competitive tender* to manage venture capital fund Kama Fund First, was signed today by RUSNANO CEO and Chairman of the Executive Board Anatoly Chubais, Perm Krai Governor Oleg Chirkunov, and Nanostart CEO Marco Beckmann.

Researchers have found theoretically that a regular lattice of Skyrmions, whose role in solid state systems such as ferromagnets has been attracting great interest, can form in a thin confined liquid crystal, a system completely different from solid state systems.

Devices might be used in brain prostheses - or combined into massive network of synthetic neurons to create a synthetic brain

The German Center for Research and Innovation (GCRI), in cooperation with the Consortium of the Ruhr Universities (ConRuhr) and the Consulate General of the Federal Republic of Germany, will host a discussion on nanotechnology and its applications in the fields of energy, electronics, medicine, and science.

How to put more bang in your biofuels? Nanoparticles! A new study shows that the addition of alumina nanoparticles can improve the performance and combustion of biodiesel, while producing fewer emissions.

Vom 7. bis 9. April 2011 findet im Bernhard-Nocht-Institut fuer Tropenmedizin in Hamburg erstmals ein Symposium des Sonderforschungsbereiches 841 "Leberentzuendung: Infektion, Immunregulation und Konsequenzen" (SFB 841) statt.

BlackBox Semiconductor, Inc., formerly Visitrade, Inc., a semiconductor technology development and application company, announced that it has executed a binding letter of intent to purchase the BlackBox Semiconductor subsidiary of Shrink Nanotechnologies, Inc. in order to commercialize its "electronic glue" semiconductor chemistry.

To speed entry for solar panel manufacturers into the North American and international markets, a new laboratory opened in Albuquerque, New Mexico, that offers worldwide certification services from one location.

The collaborative initiative involving leading academics and industrialists, led by the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, is seeking quicker, more effective and more sustainable methods of manufacturing products such as medicines, foodstuffs, dyes, pigments and nanomaterials.