Bacterial magnets and the bio-computer era By Raja Murthy

MUMBAI – Scientists are working to have some of the world’s smallest creatures carry the growing mountain-loads of information worldwide – the next generation of information technology and medical devices based on bacteria, biology and billions of years of evolution.

Researchers from Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology and University of Leeds are studying bacteria that produce magnets, and how these can be used to produce faster, cheaper, environmentally friendly electronics and computers.

Magnetospirilllum magneticum are the microbial heroes in this story. These underwater dwelling organisms use in-born magnetism to navigate across the Earth. When these bacterial creatures are fed iron, scientists discovered, they generate tiny magnetic crystals. And these crystals can be designed to make

the next generation of electronics and surgery aids in medicine [1].

Traditional electronics is quickly reaching limits of technology to make smaller, more powerful devices, says project leader Dr Sarah Staniland from Leeds University, Britain. So she and her colleagues are using Ma Nature’s help to expand frontiers of nanotechnology.

“Biology has had millennia to experiment through evolution,” Staniland said in an e-mail to Asia Times Online. “Proteins have evolved which are nano-scale factories with specific function and purposes. We can use this to our advantage, and let biology build more precise nano-scale materials and nanotechnologies for us.”

Her project uses the same protein that builds these nano-magnets in the next frontier of nanotechnology. Named after the Greek “nano” meaning “dwarf”, nanotechnology involves creating devices one billionth of meter in size.

Staniland, a professor of nanotechnology at the University of Leeds in Britain, said her project aims to develop a “toolkit of proteins and chemicals” to grow computer and electronic components. The research findings were first published in the nano-technology journal Small [2] last November.

Staniland had earlier worked in the lab of Professor Tadashi Matsunaga, from the Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology seven years ago. There she met her current project colleague Dr Masayoshi Tanaka, and helped him earn a Royal Society International Newton Fellowship for him to work at her lab in Leeds [3].

See the article here:
Bacterial magnets and the bio-computer era

(ISNS) — No longer the stuff of science fiction, nanoparticles are becoming more and more common. The extremely tiny objects can do just about everything, from filtering pollution to delivering medicine in the body. However, no one is sure of the effects if they get loose in the environment.

A team of scientists from the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst thinks there may be something to worry about.

They have not proven the particles are dangerous, but have shown that some nanoparticles can be absorbed into plants and mutate the plant’s DNA, and that, they say, is worth a further look.

Nanoparticles are so small that they act as a bridge between the size of atoms and something of tangible substance. The thickness of a human hair is measured in millionths of a meter; nanoparticles, in billionths of a meter.

And now, they are everywhere. Manufacturers put them in clothing such as socks to kill bacteria. They are in a type of house paint that cleans itself in sunlight and in the coating on eyeglasses. Clear sunscreen lotion now on the market contains zinc or titanium nanoparticles. Cars will soon have paint that heals itself from scratches.

Nanoparticles have become so common it is assumed inevitably they will end up in the environment.

To see what would happen to plants exposed to nanoparticles, the researchers took particles of copper oxide and exposed three kinds of plants to them: radishes and two types of rye, the researchers reported in Environmental Science & Technology.

They chose nanoparticles of copper because they are widely used for coloring glass, in ceramics, as a polish and in the manufacturing of rayon. They also are used in the electronics industry to manufacture semiconductors, said Bryant Nelson of the National Institute of Standards and Technology.

The research team also used particles of copper oxide larger than nano-size as a comparison as well as regular copper ions.

Copper oxide is an oxidizing agent, and some oxidizing agents from metals can cause cancer in humans, a reason for the concern.

Link:
Nanoparticles may pose environmental threat

The Korea Herald/Asia News Network Thursday, May 10, 2012

Korean scientists have developed technology that can control the way a solid material cracks for the first time in a breakthrough that could have applications in a range of fields from semiconductors to medicine.

The research was featured on the cover of Wednesday’s issue of Nature. It is the first time a Korean study has been on the cover of the world’s most authoritative scientific journal.

Nam Koo-hyun of Ewha Womans University, who led the research, said his discovery may pave the way for the development of a cheaper and quicker way to produce nano-channels.

His team is the first to discover a technique to control cracking and make use of it, he said.

“The formation of cracks is traditionally considered an unpleasant phenomenon because we thought it is impossible to control,” Nam told The Korea Herald.

Nam’s team used silicon wafers, thin slices of semiconductor material, in their experiment.

They created micro-scaled cuts in a thin brittle film deposited on the silicon in order to control the starting point of cracking, and put a “crack-stop-structure” to terminate the cracking.

“By doing this we can place the starting point of cracking very precisely, and even control the direction of the cracks and bend them around corners,” Nam told The Korea Herald.

The nano-channels that are small enough to allow ions or molecules of a certain size to pass through are highly in demand in chemistry and molecular biology, such as DNA analysis.

See the original post:
Cracking study makes nanotech breakthrough

DUBLIN–(BUSINESS WIRE)–

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/49pt57/global_market_for) has announced the addition of the “Global Market for Nano Silver” report to their offering.

Nanomaterials have enormous potential and are slated as materials for the future technologies. There are several specific type of nanomaterials already developed in the marketplace and Nano Silver is one such material which has the potential to be used across various industries. Relatively increased chemical reactivity and quantum effects are expected to make Nanomaterials more cost effective products in the medium term.

We are proud to present the readers with the first research on the nano materials subject. Versatile applications combined with cost effective manufacturing method makes nano silver , a product of the future. Despite enormous potential, nano silver remains unknown to most of the global producers and hence the product could not live up to its true potential. In this report, we have attempted to uncover some of the characteristics , features and benefits of this revolutionary product which can help change the prospects of most of the industries.

Nano Silver exhibits antibacterial as well as conductive properties. Therefore due to its antimicrobial nature, it finds use in various applications, ranging from healthcare, plastics, food packaging while the conductive properties makes it find application in electronics, conductors, touch screen etc. However, 80% of nano silver is presently used as an antibacterial agent. Existing players in the field of drug manufacture, food packaging, textiles, detergents, solar cells, consumer electronics, sensors etc will find the report more useful as it opens up a whole new world of business opportunities. The emerging application areas where research efforts are underway are again in the fields of medicine and a few in the area of conductive applications.

The current global consumption of nano silver is estimated to be in the range of 800 MT. North America is the largest consumer of Nano Silver by volume followed by Europe. However, 60% of the global capacity is located in Asia especially in China and Korea. Nano Silver is sold in two forms – solid powder and liquid solution. There two main processes for manufacture of nano silver are Control Detonation System and Hot Plasma Jet System. The price and quality of the nano silver is dependent on the particle synthesis method used.

Key Topics Covered:

– 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

– 2 METHODOLOGY

– 3 INTRODUCTION

Here is the original post:
Research and Markets: Global Market for Nano Silver

MEDIA RELEASE

IBNs Droplet Array Sheds Light on Drug-Resistant Cancer Stem Cells

Singapore, May 9, 2012 Researchers at the Institute of Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (IBN), the worlds first bioengineering and nanotechnology research institute, have developed a miniaturized biochip for investigating the effect of drugs on cancer stem cells (CSCs). Published recently in Nano Today, this new technology could boost the development of more effective cancer drugs.

In a tumor, CSCs form a small and distinct class of cancer cells that are more resistant to chemotherapy. Similar to stem cells found in human tissues, CSCs can produce and differentiate into different cell types. If CSCs are not eradicated, they can repopulate the tumor and lead to cancer recurrence. Hence, it is important for researchers to understand the efficacy of anti-cancer drugs against CSCs. However, since CSCs are so scarce they make up approximately 1% of cancer cells their study has been hampered by conventional drug screening methods, which require large sample volumes and are slow and expensive.

A team of researchers led by IBN Executive Director, Professor Jackie Y. Ying, has developed a miniaturized biological assay called the Droplet Array to perform cheaper, faster and more convenient drug screening using limited samples.

In traditional biological assays, microplates a flat plate with multiple wells in which samples are placed are commonly used, and each well requires at least 2,500 or 5,000 cells, to be present for viable analysis. By comparison, IBNs Droplet Array is a flat, rectangular glass plate on which a series of spots, each 2 millimeters in diameter, are arranged. The samples are pipetted into these tiny spots, making them appear like droplets. The plate is then coated with a layer of proprietary oil to prevent evaporation and cross contamination between the sample droplets during the rinsing process. An accompanying bench-top device to automate the rinsing process of the plate has also been developed. Being one-fifth the size of a well in a standard microplate, each spot on IBNs Droplet Array requires only 500 cells for screening. This massive reduction in sample volume not only saves money, but is also particularly advantageous for studying scarce quantities of target cells, such as CSCs.

Using the Droplet Array, the IBN researchers investigated the drug responses of CSCs extracted from breast, liver and colon cancer cells. It was found that chemotherapeutic drugs such as doxorubicin, which usually induce cell death in liver cancer cells, demonstrated poor efficacy in liver CSCs. The CSCs from the breast and colon tumors also showed much greater ability to survive the effects of anti-cancer drugs.

Animal studies were conducted to validate the findings of the Droplet Array. CSCs and non-CSCs from liver tumors were implanted into two different sets of mice at the same time. After 6 weeks, tumors were formed in the mice implanted with CSCs, whereas the mice without CSCs did not develop any tumors. Tumors extracted from the mice with CSCs also showed blood vessel formation, which confirmed the self-renewal property of these cells.

The drug resistance properties of CSCs have been widely discussed in recent years but until now, it has been challenging to quantify this correlation. Using the Droplet Array, IBN researchers have successfully demonstrated that CSCs can survive chemotherapy and drive metastasis.

Professor Jackie Y. Ying said, The Droplet Array marks a significant breakthrough in nanotechnology and lab-on-a-chip concepts, and provides an efficient platform for accelerating drug screening and development. The study of cancer stem cells, in particular, is an exciting application of this technology for both the academic and pharmaceutical industries. We hope that this finding will facilitate the development of more effective cancer drugs. We also hope to leverage on the Droplet Arrays capabilities to complement/replace animal models for drug toxicity testing, and develop new cancer diagnostics.

Here is the original post:
:: 09, May 2012 :: IBN’S DROPLET ARRAY SHEDS LIGHT ON DRUG-RESISTANT CANCER STEM CELLS

Category: Science & Technology Posted: May 8, 2012 08:02AM Author: Guest_Jim_*

When most people think of the potential uses for microsubmarines, which are one tenth the width of a human hair in length, they most likely envision the tiny vessel swimming through the human body, delivering medicine wherever it is needed. Scientists are not like most people though. As reported in the American Chemical Society’s journal Nano, these technological marvels can be used to clean up oil spills.

Despite their incredibly small size, these submarines can travel with great speed through water. This allows them to quickly grab a droplet of oil and move it to where it can actually be recollected. To help with collecting the oil, the outside of the submarines have been coated in a superhydrophobic material that also absorbs oil.

Already the microsubs have proven effective at cleaning up olive oil and motor oils spills in a laboratory. Potentially we will find these machines in the oceans when a massive spill occurs, or in factories, to clean up contaminated water before it can leak out.

Link:
Cleaning Up Oil Spills with Microsubmarines

3 May 2012

A team of scientists has developed microsubmarines that could help clean up oil spills.

According to a statement, a team of scientists has reported the development and successful testing of the first self-propelled microsubmarines designed to pick up droplets of oil from contaminated waters and transport them to collection facilities.

The report published in the journal ACS Nano concludes that these tiny machines could play an important role in cleaning up oil spills such as the 2010 Deepwater Horizon incident in the Gulf of Mexico.

Joseph Wang and his team, from the University of California San Diegos nano-engineering department, developed so-called microsubmarines, which require very little fuel and move ultrafast, to see whether these small engines could help clean up oil.

Tests showed that the cone-shaped microsubmarines can collect droplets of olive oil and motor oil in water and transport them through the water.

The microsubs have a special surface coating, which makes them superhydrophobic or extremely water-repellent and oil-absorbent.

These results demonstrate the potential of the superhydrophobic-modified microsubmarines for facile, rapid and highly efficient collection of oils in oil-contaminated water samples, said the researchers.

Different versions of micro-engines have been developed, including devices that could transport medicine through the bloodstream to diseased parts of the body. But no one has ever shown that these devices which are about 10 times smaller than the width of a human hair could help clean up oil spills.

The project received funding from the National Science Foundation, NATO Science for Peace and Security Program, Spanish MICINN, Beatriu de Pins (Government of Catalonia) and University of Alcal (Madrid).

Follow this link:
Tiny submarines could help clean oil-contaminated waters

HOLLISTON, Mass., May 3, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Harvard Bioscience, Inc. (HBIO – News), a global developer, manufacturer, and marketer of a broad range of tools to advance life science research and regenerative medicine, today reported unaudited financial results for the three months ended March 31, 2012.

First Quarter Reported Results

Revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2012 were $28.3 million, an increase of $2.0 million, or 7.6%, compared to revenues of $26.3 million for the three months ended March 31, 2011. Currency exchange rates had a negative 1.0% effect on revenues in the first quarter of 2012 compared with the first quarter of 2011. The Company’s acquisitions of CMA Microdialysis AB (“CMA”) in July 2011 and AHN Biotechnologie GmbH (“AHN”) in February 2012 had a positive 4.4% effect on revenues. Excluding the effects of currency changes and acquisitions, the Company’s organic revenue growth for the first quarter of 2012 was 4.2% over the same period in the previous year.

Net income, as measured under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), was $0.5 million, or $0.02 per diluted share for the three months ended March 31, 2012 compared to $1.7 million, or $0.06 per diluted share, for the same period in 2011. The unfavorable year-to-year quarterly GAAP earnings comparison was primarily due to increased spending in the Company’s development-stage Regenerative Medicine Device (“RMD”) business.

On a non-GAAP adjusted basis, earnings per share for our core Life Science Research Tools (“LSRT”) business for the first quarter of 2012 were $0.09 per diluted share compared with $0.08 per diluted share for the first quarter of 2011. Non-GAAP adjusted earnings per share for our RMD business for the first quarter of 2012 was a loss of $0.03 per diluted share, compared with a loss of $0.01 per diluted share for the first quarter of 2011, and reflected greater activities in developing this new initiative. The Company’s total non-GAAP adjusted earnings per share, reflecting LSRT and RMD combined, were $0.06 per diluted share for the first quarter of 2012 compared with $0.07 per diluted share for the first quarter of 2011.

Commenting on the Company’s performance Chane Graziano, CEO, stated, “We are pleased with our first quarter 2012 performance. Overall our organic growth in orders was 6% and for revenues was 4% versus the first quarter of 2011, fueled by demand in each of our four major product groups. During the first quarter of 2012 we hired a new general manager at our Denville Scientific subsidiary and introduced an exciting new nano spectrophotometer product at our Biochrom subsidiary. We expect each to have a significant impact in the second half of 2012.”

Mr. Graziano continued “In the second quarter of 2012, we expect revenues to be in the $28-$29 million range and we expect non-GAAP diluted earnings per share for our core LSRT business to be in the 9-10 cents per share range. In RMD, we expect second quarter operating expenses to be about 4 cents per diluted share. For the year, we are maintaining our guidance at $115-$120 million range for revenues and 39-42 cents non-GAAP diluted earnings per share range for our core LSRT business. We also continue to expect our RMD operating expenses to be about 13 cents per diluted share this year.”

Our second quarter 2012 revenue and earnings guidance was calculated using exchange rates (USD 1.62/GBP and USD 1.32/Euro) approximating April 27, 2012 rates and assumes a continuation of the business conditions as we see them at this time. The non-GAAP adjusted earnings per diluted share guidance excludes amortization of intangible assets, impact of future acquisitions, acquisition costs, any future restructuring actions, and stock-based compensation expense recognized under the provisions of FASB ASC Topic 718, “Compensation — Stock Compensation.” See the table below for a reconciliation of our estimated non-GAAP adjusted earnings per diluted share to our estimated GAAP earnings per diluted share. See Exhibits 4, 5 and 6 for reconciliations of GAAP to non-GAAP adjusted operating income, GAAP to non-GAAP adjusted net income and GAAP diluted earnings per common share to non-GAAP adjusted diluted earnings per common share for the three months ended March 31, 2012 and 2011, respectively.

Operating Results for Continuing Operations

Three months ended March 31, 2012 compared to three months ended March 31, 2011:

Here is the original post:
HBIO Reports First Quarter 2012 Revenue Growth of 8% Over First Quarter 2011

Featured Article Main Category: Medical Devices / Diagnostics Also Included In: Cancer / Oncology;Biology / Biochemistry Article Date: 04 May 2012 – 11:00 PDT

email to a friend printer friendly opinions

Current Article Ratings:

This article does not attempt to cover the whole field, but offers, by means of some examples, a few insights into how nanotechnology has the potential to change medicine, both in the research lab and clinically, while touching on some of the challenges and concerns that it raises.

The ability to manipulate structures and properties at the nanoscale in medicine is like having a sub-microscopic lab bench on which you can handle cell components, viruses or pieces of DNA, using a range of tiny tools, robots and tubes.

This creates a need for tools that help scientists experiment and develop such treatments.

Imagine, for example, being able to stretch out a section of DNA like a strand of spaghetti, so you can examine or operate on it, or building nanorobots that can “walk” and carry out repairs inside cell components. Nanotechnology is bringing that scientific dream closer to reality.

For instance, scientists at the Australian National University have managed to attach coated latex beads to the ends of modified DNA, and then using an “optical trap” comprising a focused beam of light to hold the beads in place, they have stretched out the DNA strand in order to study the interactions of specific binding proteins.

One of the researchers, Ned Seeman, said he envisages it will be possible to create a molecule-scale production line, where you move a molecule along till the right location is reached, and a nanobot does a bit chemisty on it, rather like “spot-welding” on a car assembly line. Seeman’s lab at NYU is also looking to use DNA nanotechnology to make a biochip computer, and to find out how biological molecules crystallize, an area that is currently fraught with challenges.

The work that Seeman and colleagues are doing is a good example of “biomimetics”, where with nanotechnology they can imitate some of the biological processes in nature, such as the behavior of DNA, to engineer new methods and perhaps even improve them.

Read the original post:
Nanotechnology In Medicine: Huge Potential, But What Are The Risks?