Microscopic tools developed at “U”
University researchers have bridged the gap between design and development for nanostructures, microscopic machines that range in function from virus fighters to power generators, according to a recent University press release.
To make development of the microscopic structures more of a reality, the team optically induced and detected quantum coherence structures using an optical probe and spectral selectivity of optical spectroscopy.
Using nonlinear optical spectroscopy and low-temperature near-field microscopy, the researchers discovered new techniques for material preparation and enhancement of diagnostic and control capabilities in nanostructures.
Most tissue loss in teenage years with schizophrenia
Schizophrenic patients experience the largest amount of tissue loss in the brain during their teenage years, according to researchers at UCLA.
The researchers, who created the first images depicting the damaging effects of schizophrenia on the brain, now have imaging techniques that catch the disease sooner. Earlier treatment could slow down brain tissue loss.
Magnetic resonance imaging of gray matter showed losses of more than 10 percent of tissue in the outer regions of the brain, with damage spreading to the rest of the brain within five years.
The disease, which typically appears in a person”s late teens or 20s, affects one percent of Americans.
HIV-infected drug users most likely to avoid therapy
Failure to undergo drug therapy continues to be a problem among injection drug users with HIV, according to researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who found that 40 percent of infected users don”t undergo highly active antiretroviral therapy.
The drug regimen, which dramatically reduces the levels of the virus in the body and slows the onset of AIDS, helps to reduce the viral load, which makes the person less infectious to others.
Through examinations of 528 HIV-infected injection drug users in Baltimore, researchers found that people who consistently injected drugs were more than 58 percent less likely to start treatment, and sporadic users were 20 percent less likely to begin the drug regimen.
Other factors, including methadone addiction in men, type of health insurance and access to regular health care, showed an increase in the likelihood of patients beginning their drug regimen.
New drug-delivery systems thanks to use of silicon
The light-emitting properties of silicon may help in the development of new drug-delivery systems and biological/chemical sensors for medical and manufacturing measurements, according to researchers at Purdue University.
The properties of nanocrystalline silicon help to stabilize the surface of a material and can initiate the material”s response to specific chemical environments and cues.
To date, no commercial devices use this porous silicon, which unlike the silicon used in microelectronic and computer application, has tiny pores on its surface to absorb and emit light.
Compiled by Daily Staff Reporter
Lisa Hoffman..
Water critical in protein function
The critical role of water in protein function may lead to the formation of more stable enzymes, ranging in purpose from medicinal to cleaning, according to researchers at Boston College.
Researchers found the stabilizing properties of water helpful in high temperature and low pH environments. Water also has a role in stabilizing non-pathogenic forms of proteins associated with Alzheimer”s disease.
Using X-ray crystallography, researchers found that protein function stops and water develops a glassy state at the same temperature of 135 degrees F below zero. This allows clusters of water and protein to form and move together in a more stable fashion than if they were in random arrays.
Protein sequence, solvent properties and salt concentration can effect the glass state, which requires the protein and the organism to adapt to various conditions.
Researchers hope to use this data to design enzymes with longer half-lives, so they can be more effective in extreme temperature and acidic environments.