Gene-based therapies poised for major upgrade thanks to Oregon State University research

Graphic depicts nanoparticles loaded with a genetic therapy entering a cell.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Oregon State University

Scientific Frontline: Extended "At a Glance" Summary: Advanced Lipid Nanoparticles for Gene Therapy

The Core Concept: A novel drug delivery methodology that utilizes optimized lipid nanoparticles to successfully transport genetic therapies and gene-editing tools into targeted sub-cellular compartments without being destroyed by the cell's natural waste disposal systems.

Key Distinction/Mechanism: Traditionally, many gene therapies are intercepted by lysosomes (the cell's recycling centers) and degraded before they can function. This new approach utilizes advanced ionizable lipids—which change their charge state depending on surrounding acidity—and a pioneering DNA-based barcoding system to measure, design, and select nanoparticle carriers that efficiently evade cellular destruction to release their genetic cargo.

Origin/History: The breakthrough findings were published in Nature Biotechnology on March 11, 2026. The research was spearheaded by graduate student Antony Jozić under the guidance of Professor Gaurav Sahay at the Oregon State University College of Pharmacy, in collaboration with researchers from OHSU, Tennessee Technological University, Yeungnam University (South Korea), and the University of Brest (France).

Atom-thin material could help solve chip manufacturing problem

Atomically thin material with extraordinary plasma resistance allows for high-aspect ratio nanofabrication
Image Credit: Scientific Frontline

Scientific Frontline: Extended "At a Glance" Summary: Chromium Oxychloride (CrOCl) 2D Hard Masks"

The Core Concept: Chromium oxychloride (CrOCl) is an atomically thin, two-dimensional metal oxyhalide material that functions as an ultra-durable hard mask for patterning nanoscale structures during computer chip manufacturing.

Key Distinction/Mechanism: Unlike conventional hard masks (such as silicon dioxide or titanium nitride) that rapidly degrade under harsh processing conditions, CrOCl features a loosely bound, layered crystal structure. When exposed to highly reactive plasma, it forms a chemically inert passivation layer that shields the underlying material. Furthermore, repeated plasma exposure smooths the CrOCl surface rather than roughening it, preventing uneven micro-masking and enabling sharper, highly vertical structural cuts.

Major Frameworks/Components:

• 2D Metal Oxyhalides: A class of atomic-scale, layer-by-layer crystalline materials that inherently possess extraordinary resistance to plasma degradation.
• Fluorine Plasma Etching: An industrial manufacturing process utilizing highly reactive gases to carve deep, narrow features into silicon, which the CrOCl material heavily resists.
• Surface Passivation: The chemical mechanism by which the top layer of the material reacts to bombardment by forming an inert protective shield.
• Substrate-Independent Transfer: The physical capability of the material to be patterned separately on a rigid substrate and subsequently transferred onto fragile or unconventional substrates.

Nanoparticle-infused saline could help people facing kidney stone surgery

By adding dark nanoparticles to a common saline solution used in kidney stone laser surgeries, researchers at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering and Duke University have found a method that could one day lead to shorter surgeries, faster recoveries and less recurrence of disease.
Photo Credit: John Zich

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary: Nanoparticle-Enhanced Kidney Stone Removal

• Main Discovery: Researchers have developed a nanoparticle-infused saline solution that transforms microscopic kidney stone fragments into magnetic targets, allowing for their complete physical extraction during laser lithotripsy surgery.
• Methodology: Functionalized iron oxide nanoparticles are introduced into the kidney via standard irrigation; these particles utilize electrostatic charges to adhere to stone "dust," which is then retrieved using a specialized magnetic wire inserted through a ureteroscope.
• Key Data: The technology focuses on clearing fragments smaller than 200 micrometers—debris typically left behind by current surgical tools—to combat the 50% recurrence rate of kidney stones observed in patients within ten years of an initial procedure.
• Significance: By ensuring the total removal of residual mineral "seeds," this method eliminates the biological foundation for stone regrowth and minimizes the post-operative pain and complications associated with passing sharp fragments naturally.
• Future Application: This magnetic retrieval platform provides a foundation for developing targeted nanoparticle therapies that could eventually dissolve stones chemically or be adapted for the removal of other pathological debris, such as gallstones.
• Branch of Science: Nanotechnology, Molecular Engineering, and Urology.
• Additional Detail: The iron oxide nanoparticles are engineered for biocompatibility and are designed to be fully compatible with existing surgical irrigation systems, requiring minimal changes to established clinical workflows.

Tiny bubbles, big breakthrough: cracking cancer’s “fortress”

Image Credit: Scientific Frontline

Scientific Frontline: Extended "At a Glance" Summary: Ultrasound-Activated Nanobubbles in Oncology

The Core Concept: Ultrasound-activated inert gas nanobubbles are injected into solid tumors and stimulated with sound waves to mechanically break down the dense, collagen-rich barriers that protect cancer cells, thereby enabling the effective delivery of therapeutic agents.

Key Distinction/Mechanism: Unlike traditional chemical treatments or destructive ablation, this method relies on the gentle mechanical "jiggling" of perfluoropropane-filled nanobubbles via directed ultrasound. This physical agitation remodels and softens the tumor's stiff extracellular matrix without destroying the surrounding cells, uniquely allowing large therapeutic molecules—such as RNA carried in lipid nanoparticles—and endogenous immune cells to penetrate the previously inaccessible tumor core.

Origin/History: The breakthrough was published in ACS Nano by a collaborative team of biomedical engineers and radiologists at Case Western Reserve University, led by Efstathios Karathanasis and Agata Exner, and announced in February 2026. The underlying nanobubble technology is concurrently being commercialized by Visano Theranostics for diagnostic imaging in prostate cancer.

Nanoparticle-based gene editing could expand treatment options for cystic fibrosis

Artistic rendering of gene editing reagents — mRNA (red) and DNA (green and yellow) constructs — being packaged into a lipid nanoparticle (blue).
Illustration Credit: Adalia Zhou

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: Lipid nanoparticles successfully delivered a full-length, healthy CFTR gene into human airway cells, restoring essential biological function in a cystic fibrosis model without the use of viral vectors.
• Methodology: Researchers engineered lipid nanoparticles to simultaneously transport three components—CRISPR/Cas9 machinery, guide RNA, and a full CFTR DNA template—and tested the system on lab-cultured human airway cells containing severe mutations.
• Key Data: While the gene was successfully integrated into only 3–4% of the target cells, the treated cell population demonstrated a restoration of 88–100% of normal CFTR channel function.
• Significance: By inserting a complete functional gene rather than fixing specific errors, this approach offers a potential universal, one-time treatment for all 1,700+ known cystic fibrosis mutations, particularly for the 10% of patients unresponsive to current drug therapies.
• Future Application: This modular, non-viral platform effectively solves the "big gene" delivery problem and could be adapted to treat other genetic lung diseases or conditions involving large genes that exceed the capacity of viral vectors.
• Branch of Science: Nanomedicine, Gene Therapy, and Pulmonary Medicine
• Additional Detail: The replacement gene underwent codon optimization to maximize protein production, enabling a small percentage of corrected cells to functionally compensate for the entire population.

Bacteria with a built-in compass

Colorized electron microscope image of the chain of magnetic nanoparticles of a single Magnetospirillum gryphsiwaldense bacterium fixed on a spring beam.
Image Credit: M. Claus and M. Wyss, Nano Imaging Lab, University of Basel

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: Precise measurement of the magnetic properties of individual Magnetospirillum gryphiswaldense bacteria, revealing the specific magnetic behavior of their internal "compass."
• Methodology: Researchers employed ultrasensitive torque magnetometry using a nanomechanical cantilever to detect magnetic signals, correlated with transmission electron microscopy and micromagnetic simulations.
• Key Data: The study quantified the magnetic hysteresis, remanent magnetic moment, and effective magnetic anisotropy of the magnetosome chain within a single bacterial cell.
• Significance: Understanding the exact magnetic mechanism of individual bacteria is a critical step toward engineering them as controllable microrobots for technological and medical uses.
• Future Application: Development of magnetically steerable biological robots for targeted drug delivery in the human body and removal of heavy metals from wastewater.
• Branch of Science: Biophysics, Nanotechnology, and Microbiology
• Additional Detail: The internal compass consists of a chain of magnetic nanoparticles called magnetosomes that allow the bacteria to align with Earth's magnetic field to efficiently locate optimal oxygen levels.

Paralysis treatment heals lab-grown human spinal cord organoids

Fluorescent micrographs showing increased neurite outgrowth from a human spinal cord organoid treated with fast-moving “dancing molecules” (left) compared to one treated with slow-moving molecules (right) containing the same bioactive signals
Image Credit: Samuel I. Stupp/Northwestern University

Scientific Frontline: Extended "At a Glance" Summary

The Core Concept: Lab-grown human spinal cord organoids are miniature, three-dimensional tissue models derived from stem cells that mimic the complex structure and function of the human spinal cord to simulate injuries and test regenerative treatments.

Key Distinction/Mechanism: Unlike previous models, these organoids incorporate microglia—the central nervous system's immune cells—allowing researchers to accurately replicate the inflammatory response and glial scarring seen in human spinal cord injuries. The "dancing molecules" therapy creates a nanofiber scaffold where rapidly moving molecules effectively engage cellular receptors to trigger neurite growth and reverse paralysis, a mechanism significantly more effective than therapies using static molecules.

Major Frameworks/Components:

• Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells (iPSCs): The source material for growing the organoids, allowing for patient-specific tissue generation.
• Supramolecular Therapeutic Peptides (STPs): The chemical basis of the "dancing molecules" that assemble into nanofibers.
• Microglia Integration: The inclusion of immune cells to create a "pseudo-organ" that mimics natural inflammatory responses.
• Glial Scarring: A physical barrier to nerve regeneration that the therapy successfully diminished in trials.

Branch of Science: Regenerative Medicine, Nanotechnology, Neuroscience, and Bioengineering.

Future Application: The technology paves the way for personalized medicine, where a patient's own stem cells could be used to grow implantable tissues that avoid immune rejection. It also offers a platform to test treatments for chronic, long-term spinal cord injuries and other neurodegenerative conditions.

Why It Matters: This advancement bridges the gap between animal studies and clinical trials, providing a highly accurate human model for spinal cord injury. It validates a promising therapy that has earned Orphan Drug Designation from the FDA, offering renewed hope for restoring function in paralyzed patients.

New Route into 2D Materials: Research Team Produces Ultra-Clean Mxenes with Outstanding Electrical Performance

The image combines a model derived from a scanning electron microscopy image (left) with a snippet of the underlying crystal structure of a studied MXene featuring precisely controlled surface terminations.
Image Credit: © B. Schröder/HZDR

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: A novel "Gas-Liquid-Solid" (GLS) synthesis strategy enables the production of MXenes with unprecedented purity and precisely controlled halogen surface terminations.
• Methodology: Researchers reacted solid MAX-phase precursors with molten salts and iodine vapor to replace aggressive acid etching, effectively regulating the attachment of specific halogen atoms (chlorine, bromine, or iodine) to the material surface.
• Key Data: The resulting chlorine-terminated Ti\(_{3}\)C\(_{2}\) exhibited a 160-fold increase in macroscopic conductivity, a 13-fold improvement in Terahertz conductivity, and a nearly 4-fold rise in charge carrier mobility compared to standard chemically etched samples.
• Significance: This technique eliminates atomic disorder and impurities on material surfaces, significantly reducing electron scattering and resolving a major bottleneck in the electrical stability and performance of 2D materials.
• Future Application: These tailored MXenes are optimized for use in high-performance flexible electronics, next-generation wireless components, electromagnetic shielding, and radar-absorbing coatings.
• Branch of Science: Materials Science and Nanotechnology
• Additional Detail: The method allows for the synthesis of MXenes with dual or triple halogen terminations in controlled ratios, enabling precise tuning of properties such as electromagnetic wave absorption frequencies.

Bubble Bots: Simple Biocompatible Microrobots Autonomously Target Tumors

A scanning electron microscope image of mass-produced microbubbles produced by simply using an ultrasound probe to agitate a BSA solution.
Image Credit: Gao Lab/Caltech

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: Development of "bubble bots," biocompatible microrobots comprising protein-shelled gas bubbles that autonomously navigate to tumors for targeted drug delivery.
• Methodology: Scientists use ultrasound to agitate bovine serum albumin into microbubbles, modifying their surfaces with urease for urea-fueled propulsion and catalase to steer toward high hydrogen peroxide concentrations naturally found in tumors.
• Key Data: Trials in mice demonstrated a roughly 60 percent reduction in bladder tumor weight over 21 days compared to standard drug treatments alone.
• Significance: The design eliminates the need for complex fabrication or constant external magnetic guidance, offering a scalable, "smart" solution that autonomously locates pathological sites.
• Future Application: Clinical oncology treatments requiring deep tissue penetration and localized chemotherapy release to minimize systemic side effects.
• Branch of Science: Medical Engineering, Nanotechnology
• Additional Detail: Once at the target site, focused ultrasound is employed to burst the bubbles, generating force that drives the therapeutic cargo deeper into the tumor tissue than passive diffusion allows.

UCLA study sets new benchmarks for 3D, atom-by-atom maps of disordered materials

Image Credit: Courtesy of UCLA

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: A new computational framework establishes a benchmark for determining the three-dimensional positions and elemental identities of individual atoms within amorphous, disordered materials like glass.
• Methodology: Researchers combined atomic electron tomography (AET) and ptychography with advanced algorithms to analyze rigorously simulated electron-microscope data, accounting for image noise, focus variations, and atomic thermal vibrations based on quantum mechanical models.
• Key Data: The study demonstrated 100% accuracy in identifying silicon and oxygen atoms within amorphous silica nanoparticles, achieving a positional precision of approximately seven trillionths of a meter.
• Significance: This advancement overcomes the historical limitation of 3D atomic imaging being restricted to crystalline structures, enabling the precise characterization of non-repeating, disordered solids for the first time.
• Future Application: The technique supports the development of advanced materials for ultrathin electronics, solar cells, rewritable memory, quantum devices, and potentially the biological imaging of life-essential elements like carbon and nitrogen.
• Branch of Science: Nanotechnology, Materials Science, and Computational Physics.
• Additional Detail: The research appears alongside a complementary study in the journal Nature, signaling a major shift in the ability to visualize matter at the atomic scale without relying on averaging repeating patterns.

Energy flow in semiconductors: new insights thanks to ultrafast spectroscopy

It took three years for researchers Grazia Raciti, Begoña Abad Mayor, and Ilaria Zardo (from left to right) to develop and characterize the complex setup – only then were the now-published measurements possible.
Photo Credit: C. Möller, Swiss Nanoscience Institute, University of Basel

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: Researchers achieved unprecedented accuracy in observing energy flow mechanisms within the semiconductor germanium, detailing step-by-step energy transfer from the electronic system to the atomic lattice following ultrafast excitation.
• Methodology: The team utilized a novel combination of time-resolved Raman spectroscopy to measure lattice vibration changes and transient reflection spectroscopy to record light behavior, stimulating the material with 30-femtosecond laser pulses and validating results with computer simulations.
• Key Data: The experimental setup detected intensity changes of less than 1 percent and frequency shifts under 0.2 cm⁻¹ with a temporal resolution capable of distinguishing picosecond-scale responses from microsecond-interval pulses.
• Significance: This study provides a comprehensive understanding of how energy dissipates and converts to heat in semiconductors, addressing critical challenges regarding overheating and efficiency in modern electronics.
• Future Application: Findings will directly inform the design of next-generation computer chips, sensors, and phononic components that offer faster recovery times and reduced thermal accumulation.
• Branch of Science: Condensed Matter Physics and Nanoscience.
• Additional Detail: The specific combination of spectroscopic methods allowed for the simultaneous observation of frequency, intensity, and duration of lattice vibrations (phonons) as they evolved over time.

Purdue mRNA therapy delivery system proves to be shelf-stable, storable

The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has published research about a Purdue University virus-mimicking platform technology that targets bladder cancer cells with mRNA therapies. The LENN platform scientists include, from left, Christina Ferreira, Saloni Darji, Bennett Elzey, Joydeep Rakshit, Feng Qu and David Thompson.
Photo Credit: Purdue University /Ali Harmeson

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: The LENN (Layer-by-layer Elastin-like Polypeptide Nucleic Acid Nanoparticle) platform successfully delivers mRNA therapies to bladder cancer cells while retaining full biological activity after being freeze-dried into a shelf-stable powder.
• Methodology: Researchers engineered a virus-mimicking dual-layer nanoparticle to condense and protect nucleic acids, then subjected the formulation to lyophilization (freeze-drying) and storage at -20°C to validate its stability and rehydration properties.
• Key Data: The lyophilized samples maintained complete structural integrity and functionality after three days of storage, successfully targeting upregulated receptors on tumor cells without triggering an immune response.
• Significance: This technology overcomes the severe cold-chain limitations of current lipid nanoparticle systems—which often require storage below -45°C—by providing a biomanufacturable, storable powder form that facilitates easier global distribution.
• Future Application: The team is upscaling the system for preclinical evaluation and initiating efficacy and safety studies in mouse models of bladder cancer.
• Branch of Science: Nanomedicine, Pharmaceutical Chemistry, and Oncology.
• Additional Detail: Multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) profiling confirmed that the system utilizes natural entry pathways and avoids immune detection, potentially solving the "redosing" clearance issues associated with traditional viral vectors.

A Nanomaterial Flex — MXene Electrodes Help OLED Display Technology Shine, While Bending and Stretching

Researchers from Drexel University and Seoul National University have created organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) that could improve mobile technology displays and enable wearable technology.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of Drexel University

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: Researchers successfully engineered a highly stretchable Organic Light-Emitting Diode (OLED) capable of expanding to 1.6 times its original length (60% elongation) while maintaining functional electroluminescence, overcoming the rigidity of traditional displays.
• Electrode Mechanism: The device replaces brittle indium tin oxide (ITO) components with transparent, flexible electrodes composed of MXene nanomaterials and silver nanowires, which provide high electrical conductivity and mechanical robustness under stress.
• Active Layer Innovation: A specialized "exciplex-assisted phosphorescent" (ExciPh) organic layer was developed to serve as the light-emitting medium, utilizing chemical engineering to facilitate efficient charge transport and exciton formation even during physical deformation.
• Performance Metrics: The OLEDs demonstrate superior stability compared to existing technologies, exhibiting only a 10.6% reduction in performance when subjected to significant strain and retaining 83% of light output after 100 repeated stretching cycles.
• Significance/Application: This technology clears the path for "skin-mounted" displays and deformable optoelectronics, enabling wearable devices that can visualize real-time health data (such as body temperature and blood flow) directly on the skin.

X-raying auditory ossicles – a new technique reveals structures in record time

Scientists at PSI were able to observe the local collagen structures in an ossicle by scanning it with an X-ray beam. The different colours of the cylinders indicate how strongly the collagen bundles are spatially aligned in a section measuring 20 by 20 by 20 micrometres.
Image Credit: © Paul Scherrer Institute PSI/Christian Appel

Scientific Frontline: "At a Glance" Summary

• Main Discovery: Researchers refined a "tensor tomography" X-ray diffraction technique that simultaneously detects biological structures ranging from nanometers to millimeters, significantly accelerating the imaging process.
• Methodology: The team used a precisely rotated X-ray beam (approx. 20 micrometers wide) to generate millions of interference patterns around two axes, which software then reconstructed into a 3D tomogram.
• Key Statistic: The optimized process reduced the measurement time for a complete tomogram from roughly 24 hours to just over one hour.
• Context: To validate the method, the team imaged the auditory ossicle (anvil) of the ear, successfully mapping the spatial orientation of nanometer-sized collagen fibers crucial for sound transmission.
• Significance: This drastic reduction in scan time makes statistical studies involving hundreds of samples feasible, aiding biomedical research in areas like bone tissue analysis and implant development.

Nanotechnology: In-Depth Description

Scientific Frontline / AI generated

Nanotechnology is the branch of science, engineering, and technology conducted at the nanoscale, which is about 1 to 100 nanometers. It involves the manipulation and control of matter on an atomic, molecular, and supramolecular scale to create materials, devices, and systems with fundamentally new properties and functions.

Surfing on the waves of the microcosm

A particle (red sphere) is guided from left to its destination (right) using a laser trap (double-cone) by means of a protocol developed in the study, which is described by the parameter λ. A known time-dependent external force field F (t) acts on this environment. The optimised protocol exploits this force field in a way that extracts the maximum amount of work. This can be applied to various external fields, to active particles and to micro-robot transport problems. 
Image Credit: HHU/Kristian S. Olsen

Conditions can get rough in the micro- and nanoworld. To ensure that e.g. nutrients can still be optimally transported within cells, the minuscule transporters involved need to respond to the fluctuating environment. Physicists at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) and Tel Aviv University in Israel have used model calculations to examine how this can succeed. They have now published their results – which could also be relevant for future microscopic machines – in the scientific journal Nature Communications. 

When planning an ocean crossing, sailors seek a course, which makes optimum use of favorable wind and ocean currents, and maneuver to save time and energy. They also react to random fluctuations in wind and currents and take advantage of fair winds and waves. Such considerations regarding energy costs are also important for transport processes at the micro- and nanoscale. For example, molecular motors should use as little energy as possible when transporting nutrients from A to B between and within biological cells.  

Nasal drops fight brain tumors noninvasively

Researchers at WashU Medicine have developed a noninvasive medicine delivered through the nose that successfully eliminated deadly brain tumors in mice. The medicine is based on a spherical nucleic acid, a nanomaterial (labeled red) that travels along a nerve (green) from the nose to the brain, where it triggers an immune response to eliminate the tumor.
Image Credit: Courtesy of Alexander Stegh

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, along with collaborators at Northwestern University, have developed a noninvasive approach to treat one of the most aggressive and deadly brain cancers. Their technology uses precisely engineered structures assembled from nano-size materials to deliver potent tumor-fighting medicine to the brain through nasal drops. The novel delivery method is less invasive than similar treatments in development and was shown in mice to effectively treat glioblastoma by boosting the brain’s immune response.

Glioblastoma tumors form from brain cells called astrocytes and are the most common kind of brain cancer, affecting roughly three in 100,000 people in the U.S. Glioblastoma generally progresses very quickly and is almost always fatal. There are no curative treatments for the disease, in part because delivering medicines to the brain remains extremely challenging.

Rice engineers show lab grown diamond films can stop costly mineral buildup in pipes

Pulickel Ajayan and Xiang Zhang
Photo Credit: Jeff Fitlow/Rice University

In industrial pipes, mineral deposits build up the way limescale collects inside a kettle ⎯ only on a far larger and more expensive scale. Mineral scaling is a major issue in water and energy systems, where it slows flow, strains equipment and drives up costs.

A new study by Rice University engineers shows that lab-grown diamond coatings could resolve the issue, providing an alternative to chemical additives and mechanical cleaning, both of which offer only temporary relief and carry environmental or operational downsides.

“Because of these limitations, there is growing interest in materials that can naturally resist scale formation without constant intervention,” said Xiang Zhang, assistant research professor of materials science and nanoengineering and a first author on the study alongside Rice postdoctoral researcher Yifan Zhu. “Our work addresses this urgent need by identifying a coating material that can ‘stay clean’ on its own.”

Innovation turns building vents into carbon-capture devices

A carbon nanofiber-based direct air capture filter developed by the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering could turn existing building ventilation systems into carbon-capture devices while cutting homeowners’ energy costs. Through life cycle assessment, the air filter shows a carbon removal efficiency of 92.1% from cradle to grave.
Photo Credit: Elaina Eichorn

With a newly developed nanofiber filter, air conditioners, heaters and other HVAC systems could remove airborne carbon dioxide while cutting energy costs

A nanofiber air filter developed at the University of Chicago could turn existing building ventilation into carbon-capture devices while cutting homeowners’ energy costs.

In a paper recently published in Science Advances, researchers from the lab of Asst. Prof. Po-Chun Hsu in the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering (UChicago PME) developed a distributed carbon nanofiber direct air capture filter that could potentially turn every home, office, school or other building into a small system working toward the global problem of airborne carbon dioxide.

A life-cycle analysis shows that—even after factoring this extra CO2 released by everything from manufacture and transportation to maintenance and disposal—the new filter is more than 92% efficient in removing the gas from the air.

A system for targeted drug delivery using magnetic microrobots

Microrobots can be transported and activated in a safe and controlled manner, marking a decisive step forward in the use of these technological devices in targeted medical treatments.
Photo Credit: Courtesy of University of Barcelona

The study, led by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH Zurich) and published in the journal Science, involves Professor Josep Puigmartí-Luis from the Faculty of Chemistry and the Institute of Theoretical and Computational Chemistry (IQTC) of the University of Barcelona. He is the only researcher from a Spanish institution to sign this paper, which is the result of the European ANGIE project, an initiative coordinated by Professor Salvador Pané (ETH) in collaboration with the Chemistry In Flow and Nanomaterials Synthesis (ChemInFlow) research group, led by Professor Puigmartí. 

The new microrobotic platform presents an innovative strategy for administering drugs in a precise and targeted manner. It is scalable and can be applied to numerous situations in which the administration of therapeutic agents is difficult to access, such as tumors, arteriovenous malformations, localized infections, or tissue injuries.