A research led by scientists from City University of Hong Kong (CityU) has successfully developed a super-strong, highly ductile and super-light titanium-based alloy using additive manufacturing, commonly known as 3D printing. Their findings open up a new pathway to design alloys with unprecedented structures and properties for various structural applications. The research team was led by Professor Liu Chain-Tsuan, University Distinguished Professor in the College of Engineering and Senior Fellow of CityU’s Hong Kong Institute for Advanced Study (HKIAS). Dr…
A multi-disciplinary project driven by EMBL Australia researchers at Monash University and Harvard University has found a way to make antibiotics more effective against antibiotic-resistant bacteria – also known as ‘superbugs. Antimicrobial resistance to superbugs has been evolving and is one of the top 10 global public health threats facing humanity, according to the World Health Organization. This new research will provide a pathway to increasing the effectiveness of antibiotics, without clinicians having to resort to risky strategies of giving…
Iron (Fe) is known and utilized by mankind since thousands of years, but until now, we know very little about the local chemistry at the interfaces separating different crystallites, so-called grain boundaries. Beyond that, how different solute species interact remains elusive. What happens when two or more elements diffuse to the grain boundary and segregate there? How do they interact with each other and how will they influence the interfacial properties? Ali Ahmadian, researcher in the department Structure and Nano-/Micromechanics…
Most of us control light all the time without even thinking about it, usually in mundane ways: we don a pair of sunglasses and put on sunscreen, and close—or open—our window blinds. But the control of light can also come in high-tech forms. The screen of the computer, tablet, or phone on which you are reading this is one example. Another is telecommunications, which controls light to create signals that carry data along fiber-optic cables. Scientists also use high-tech methods…
The demonstration that 2D heterostructures can be tuned electrically provides new perspectives for quantum simulation. Exploring the properties and behaviours of strongly interacting quantum particles is one of the frontiers of modern physics. Not only are there major open problems that await solutions, some of them since decades (think high-temperature superconductivity). Equally important, there are various regimes of quantum many-body physics that remain essentially inaccessible with current analytical and numerical tools. For these cases in particular, experimental platforms are sought…
Researchers from Japan develop a platform based on nanofibers to trap brain cancer cells as a therapeutic strategy. Our body heals its injuries by essentially replacing damaged cells with new cells. The new cells often migrate to the site of injury, a process known as “cell migration.” However, abnormal cell migration can also facilitate the transport and spread of cancer cells within the body. Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) is one such example of a highly invasive brain tumor that spreads via…
Light offers an irreplaceable way to interact with our universe. It can travel across galactic distances and collide with our atmosphere, creating a shower of particles that tell a story of past astronomical events. Here on earth, controlling light lets us send data from one side of the planet to the other. Given its broad utility, it’s no surprise that light plays a critical role in enabling 21st century quantum information applications. For example, scientists use laser light to precisely control…
Integrated photonics allow us to build compact, portable, low-power chip-scale optical systems used in commercial products, revolutionizing today’s optical datacenters and communications. But integrating on-chip optical gain elements to build lasers or to amplify optical power runs the risk of reflected light from other components compromising or interfering with the laser’s performance. The solution is to increase on-chip optical isolation. Typically, optical isolation is achieved with magnetic materials and magnetic fields, but these are not compatible with current semiconductor foundry…
Scientists from Skoltech, Philips Research, and Goethe University Frankfurt have trained a neural network to detect anomalies in medical images to assist physicians in sifting through countless scans in search of pathologies. Reported in IEEE Access, the new method is adapted to the nature of medical imaging and is more successful in spotting abnormalities than general-purpose solutions. Image anomaly detection is a task that comes up in data analysis in many industries. Medical scans, however, pose a particular challenge. It is way…
Vanderbilt and Penn State engineers have developed a novel approach to design and fabricate thin-film infrared light sources with near-arbitrary spectral output driven by heat, along with a machine learning methodology called inverse design that reduced the optimization time for these devices from weeks or months on a multi-core computer to a few minutes on a consumer-grade desktop. The ability to develop inexpensive, efficient, designer infrared light sources could revolutionize molecular sensing technologies. Additional applications include free-space communications, infrared beacons…
The skin bacterium Staphylococcus aureus often develops antibiotic resistance. It can then cause infections that are difficult to treat. Researchers at the University of Bonn have uncovered an ingenious way in which a certain strain of Staphylococcus aureus protects itself against the important antibiotic vancomycin. The results have now been published in the journal Microbiology Spectrum. In the study, the researchers investigated the development of resistance in a Staphylococcus aureus strain that is innocuous to humans. For this purpose, they…
Neurons use local protein synthesis as dominant source of protein production To form and modify synaptic connections and store information, such as memories, neurons continuously remodel their essential cellular resources, the proteins. The complexity of a neuron’s dendrites and axons (the information-receiving and -sending parts of the neuron), though, poses unique challenges for protein supply at remote locations. To fulfill the local demand for new protein, neurons localize messenger RNAs (mRNAs) and ribosomes near synapses to produce proteins directly where…
MHH research team finds biomarker for treatment success with donor lymphocyte infusion. When chemotherapy does not help a leukemia patient, stem cell transplantation is the last resort. In this case, the diseased bone marrow is usually replaced by healthy cells from a suitable donor with the help of a transfusion. After the transfusion, the donated stem cells migrate into the bone marrow and begin to form new, healthy blood cells there after some time. However, this is not always successful….
New study elucidates fundamental enigma of topological insulators. They are regarded as one of the most interesting materials for future electronics: Topological insulators conduct electricity in a special way and hold the promise of novel circuits and faster mobile communications. Under the leadership of the Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf (HZDR), a research team from Germany, Spain and Russia has now unravelled a fundamental property of this new class of materials: How exactly do the electrons in the material respond when they are…
Totimorphic structural materials can achieve any shape. Researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have developed a shape-shifting material that can take and hold any possible shape, paving the way for a new type of multifunctional material that could be used in a range of applications, from robotics and biotechnology to architecture. The research is published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. “Today’s shape-shifting materials and structures can only transition…
Reactive oxygen species (ROS) can act as signal carriers during the evolution of malignant tumors. At the appropriate concentration, ROS mediate signal transduction and cell growth. However, ROS are a double-edged sword, as excessive ROS can oxidize proteins, damage the DNA structure, and induce cell apoptosis. Moreover, ROS can induce inflammation at the tumor site, which further improves tumor immunogenicity. Therefore, increasing the content of ROS in tumor sites has become an effective method for cancer therapy. At present, the…
Feedback
