New on-chip device uses exotic light rays in 2D material to detect molecules. Researchers have developed a highly sensitive detector for identifying molecules via their infrared vibrational “fingerprint”. Published in Nature Communications, this innovative detector converts incident infrared light into ultra-confined “nanolight” in the form of phonon polaritons within the detector´s active area. This mechanism serves two crucial purposes: it boosts the overall detector´s sensitivity and enhances the vibrational fingerprint of nanometer-thin molecular layer placed on top of the detector, allowing…
… demonstrates efficacy and safety in preclinical models of HER2-positive solid tumors. The p95HER2 protein is found expressed in one third of HER2+ tumors, which represent 4% of all tumors. Led by VHIO investigators, CAR T cells targeting p95HER2 have been engineered to secrete the TECH2Me bispecific antibody. Both therapies specifically and independently recognize tumor cells. In addition, the TECH2Me bispecific antibody activates immune cells within the tumor microenvironment. This dual mechanism of action has demonstrated safety and achieved complete…
MHH researchers are developing an innovative drug to prevent the rejection of donor skin grafts. When people suffer severe burns, there is not only a risk of infection in the wound. The high loss of fluid can also result in life-threatening circulatory shock. Therefore, the destroyed skin must be replaced as quickly as possible. Ideally, the wounds are treated with the patient’s own skin from healthy parts of the body, so-called split-thickness skin grafts. However, the tissue is often insufficient…
Hepatitis E is a common disease worldwide, but it often remains undetected. “There’s no precise data on how often the infection affects the neurological system,” says Michelle Jagst. What is known is that up to 11 percent of patients with certain neurological conditions such as Guillain-Barré syndrome and neuralgic amyotrophy either have HEV antibodies or are infected with the virus. Cells are infected directly In order to find out more, the research group is using a cell model that was…
Impact of Carbon and Nitrogen Signalling on Floral Repressors in Arabidopsis. An international research team, including Dr Justyna Olas who is co-first author on this study, has uncovered fundamental mechanisms regulating flowering time in Arabidopsis thaliana, as detailed in a recent publication in the journal Plant Physiology. The study investigates the interplay between carbon and nitrogen signalling pathways and their influence on the expression of the floral repressor FLOWERING LOCUS C (FLC). Dr Olas, now a junior research group leader…
SwSCOR will help NOAA predict geomagnetic storms and protect Earth assets. Southwest Research Institute has won a $60 million contract to build three coronagraphs for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). SwRI’s novel Space Weather Solar Coronagraph (SwSCOR) is NOAA’s next-generation instrument to provide early detection and characterization of Earth-directed coronal mass ejections (CMEs). CMEs are huge bursts of coronal plasma threaded with intense magnetic fields ejected from the Sun over the course of several hours. CMEs arriving at…
A study led by the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) has revealed how mesenchymal stem cells respond to the viscosity of their environment, a key aspect in their differentiation process. Research led by Manuel Salmeron, ICREA Research Professor at the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) and Professor of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Glasgow, has improved our understanding of how mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) sense the viscosity of their environment, a key factor in their differentiation into…
UC Riverside scientists have described ‘Uncus,’ the oldest ecdysozoan and the first from the Precambrian period. Everyone has a past. That includes the millions of species of insects, arachnids, and nematode worms that make up a major animal group called the Ecdysozoa. Until recently, details about this group’s most distant past have been elusive. But a UC Riverside-led team has now identified the oldest known ecdysozoan in the fossil record and the only one from the Precambrian period. Their discovery…
Humans and animals move with remarkable economy without consciously thinking about it by utilizing the natural oscillation patterns of their bodies. A new tool developed by researchers at the Technical University of Munich (TUM) can now utilize this knowledge for the first time to make robots move more efficiently. Four-legged animals that start walking and gradually pick up speed will automatically fall into a trot at some point. This is because it would take more energy not to change gait….
… paving the way for personalized, blood-based, 3D-printed implants. Scientists have created a new ‘biocooperative’ material based on blood, which has shown to successfully repair bones, paving the way for personalised regenerative blood products that could be used as effective therapies to treat injury and disease. Researchers from the Schools of Pharmacy and Chemical Engineering at the University of Nottingham have used peptide molecules that can guide key processes taking place during the natural healing of tissues to create living…
…offers a fast and cost-effective way to test drugs. Researchers at the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute and Hospital have reinforced their leading role in infectious disease research by characterising and developing a new study model using Drosophila, which will enable the evaluation of various infectious agents. The Clinical and Experimental Microbiology Unit (UMCiE) at the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP), in collaboration with the Comparative Medicine and Bioimage Centre of Catalonia (CMCiB), a strategic project of the institute, has spent…
KIT researchers produce metamaterial with different extension and compression properties than conventional materials. With this material, the working group headed by Professor Martin Wegener at KIT’s Institute of Applied Physics (APH) has overcome a limitation of metamaterials. Lead author Dr. Yi Chen compares this with human communication and an effect known from the “telephone game”: When people communicate through a chain of intermediaries, the message received by the last person can be completely different than if the first and last…
Cutting back on animal protein in our diets can save on resources and greenhouse gas emissions. But convincing meat-loving consumers to switch up their menu is a challenge. Looking at this problem from a mechanical engineering angle, Stanford engineers are pioneering a new approach to food texture testing that could pave the way for faux filets that fool even committed carnivores. In a new paper in Science of Food, the team demonstrated that a combination of mechanical testing and machine learning can describe…
… pave the way for sensitive detection of atmospheric pollutants. Alongside carbon dioxide, methane is a key driver of global warming. To detect and monitor the climate pollutants in the atmosphere precisely, scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) have developed an advanced laser technology. A high-power ytterbium thin-disk laser drives an optical parametric oscillator (OPO) to generate high-power, stable pulses in the short-wave infrared (SWIR) spectral range. This allows researchers to detect and analyze…
New Starting Point for Cancer Research. A recent study from the University of Würzburg unveiled a key enzyme involved in producing selenoproteins, opening new strategies for treating certain types of cancer in children. Selenoproteins are crucial for several biological functions, including the breakdown of harmful substances, immune system support, and regulating metabolic processes. However, in specific contexts, these proteins can be misused and shield cancer cells from death. One such protein, glutathione peroxidase 4 (GPX4), is vital in supporting cellular…
…helps extract the timescale of the Sun’s birth. Have you ever wondered how long it took our Sun to form in its stellar nursery? An international collaboration of scientists is now closer to an answer. They succeeded in the measurement of the bound-state beta decay of fully-ionised thallium (205Tl81+) ions at the Experimental Storage Ring (ESR) of GSI/FAIR. This measurement has profound effects on the production of radioactive lead (205Pb) in asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars and can be used…
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