Artificial Intelligence-Enhanced Analysis of Genomic DNA Visualized with Nanoparticle-Tagged Peptides under Electron Microscopy.

DNA visualization has advanced across multiple microscopy platforms, albeit with limited progress in the identification of novel staining agents for electron microscopy (EM), notwithstanding its ability to furnish a broad magnification range and high-resolution details for observing DNA molecules. Herein, a non-toxic, universal, and simple method is proposed that uses gold nanoparticle-tagged peptides to stain all types of naturally occurring DNA molecules, enabling their visualization under EM. This method enhances the current DNA visualization capabilities, allowing for sequence-specific, genomic-scale, and multi-conformational visualization.

Biocompatible Co-organic Composite Thin Film Deposited by VHF Plasma-Enhanced Atomic Layer Deposition at a Low Temperature.

Although metal-organic thin films are required for many biorelated applications, traditional deposition methods have proven challenging in preparing these composite materials. Here, a Co-organic composite thin film was prepared by plasma-enhanced atomic layer deposition (PEALD) with cobaltocene (Co(Cp)) on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), using two very high frequency (VHF) NH plasmas (60 and 100 MHz), for use as a tissue culture scaffold. VHF PEALD was employed to reduce the temperature and control the thickness and composition.

Monolithic DNApatite: An Elastic Apatite with Sub-Nanometer Scale Organo-Inorganic Structures.

Hydroxyapatite (HA) exhibits outstanding biocompatibility, bioactivity, osteoconductivity, and natural anti-inflammatory properties. Pure HA, ion-doped HA, and HA-polymer composites are investigated, but critical limitations such as brittleness remain; numerous efforts are being made to address them. Herein, the novel self-crystallization of a polymeric single-stranded deoxyribonucleic acid (ssDNA) without additional phosphate ions for synthesizing deoxyribonucleic apatite (DNApatite) is presented.

Chain-like One-Dimensional Assembly of Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: An Approach To Improve Hydrogel Adhesion.

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNPs) are well known for their adhesive properties with hydrogels and living tissues. However, achieving direct contact between the silica nanoparticle surface and the adherend necessitates the removal of capping agents, which can lead to severe aggregation when exposed to wet surfaces. This aggregation is ineffective for simultaneously bridging the two adherends, resulting in a reduced adhesive strength.

Scanning Electron Microscopy Imaging of Large DNA Molecules Using a Metal-Free Electro-Stain Composed of DNA-Binding Proteins and Synthetic Polymers.

This paper presents the first scanning electron microscopy (SEM)-based DNA imaging in biological samples. This novel approach incorporates a metal-free electro-stain reagent, formulated by combining DNA-binding proteins and synthetic polymers to enhance the visibility of 2-nm-thick DNA under SEM. Notably, DNA molecules stain with proteins and polymers appear as dark lines under SEM.

Fabrication of stem cell heterospheroids with sustained-release chitosan and poly(lactic-co-glycolic acid) microspheres to guide cell fate toward chondrogenic differentiation.

Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC)-based therapies show great potential in treating various diseases. However, control of the fate of injected cells needs to be improved. In this work, we developed an efficient methodology for modulating chondrogenic differentiation of MSCs.

Structural understanding of SARS-CoV-2 virus entry to host cells.

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), is a major global health concern associated with millions of fatalities worldwide. Mutant variants of the virus have further exacerbated COVID-19 mortality and infection rates, emphasizing the urgent need for effective preventive strategies. Understanding the viral infection mechanism is crucial for developing therapeutics and vaccines.

Utilizing peptide-anchored DNA templates for novel programmable nanoparticle assemblies in biological macromolecules: A review.

Biological macromolecules such as proteins and DNA are known to self-assemble into various structural moieties with distinct functions. While nucleic acids are the structural building blocks, peptides exemplify diversity as tailorable biochemical units. Thus, combining the scaffold properties of the biomacromolecule DNA and the functionality of peptides could evolve into a powerful method to obtain tailorable nano assemblies.

Gold Nanoparticles as Exquisite Colorimetric Transducers for Water Pollutant Detection.

Gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) are useful nanomaterials as transducers for colorimetric sensors because of their high extinction coefficient and ability to change color depending on aggregation status. Therefore, over the past few decades, AuNP-based colorimetric sensors have been widely applied in several environmental and biological applications, including the detection of water pollutants. According to various studies, water pollutants are classified into heavy metals or cationic metal ions, toxins, and pesticides.

Chitosan-reinforced gelatin composite hydrogel as a tough, anti-freezing, and flame-retardant gel polymer electrolyte for flexible supercapacitors.

Hydrogel-based electrolytes for flexible solid-state supercapacitors (SSCs) have received significant attention due to their mechanical robustness and stable electrochemical performance over a wide temperature range. However, achieving flame retardancy in such SSCs at subzero temperatures to increase their practical utility remains challenging. Furthermore, there is a need for sustainable and bio-friendly SSCs that use natural polymer-based hydrogel electrolytes.

Bioessential Inorganic Molecular Wire-Reinforced 3D-Printed Hydrogel Scaffold for Enhanced Bone Regeneration.

Materials with physicochemical properties and biological activities similar to those of the natural extracellular matrix are in high demand in tissue engineering. In particular, Mo Se inorganic molecular wire (IMW) is a promising material composed of bioessential minerals and possess nanometer-scale diameters, negatively charged surfaces, physical flexibility, and nanotopography characteristics, which are essential for interactions with cell membrane proteins. Here, an implantable 3D Mo Se IMW enhanced gelatin-GMA/silk-GMA hydrogel (IMW-GS hydrogel) is developed for osteogenesis and bone formation, followed by biological evaluations.

Biomineralization of bone tissue: calcium phosphate-based inorganics in collagen fibrillar organic matrices.

Background: Bone regeneration research is currently ongoing in the scientific community. Materials approved for clinical use, and applied to patients, have been developed and produced. However, rather than directly affecting bone regeneration, these materials support bone induction, which regenerates bone.

On-chip selection of adenosine aptamer using graphene oxide-coated magnetic nanoparticles.

Systematic evolution of ligands by exponential enrichment (SELEX) is a method that is generally used for developing aptamers, which have arisen the promising alternatives for antibodies. However, conventional SELEX methods have limitations, such as a limited selection of target molecules, time-consuming and complex fabrication processes, and labor-intensive processes, which result in low selection yields. Here, we used (i) graphene oxide (GO)-coated magnetic nanoparticles in the selection process for separation and label-free detection and (ii) a multilayered microfluidic device manufactured using a three-dimensionally printed mold that is equipped with automated control valves to achieve precise fluid flows.

Nanoparticles as Next-Generation Tooth-Whitening Agents: Progress and Perspectives.

Whitening agents, such as hydrogen peroxide and carbamide peroxide, are currently used in clinical applications for dental esthetic and dental care. However, the free radicals generated by whitening agents cause pathological damage; therefore, their safety issues remain controversial. Furthermore, whitening agents are known to be unstable and short-lived.

Tannic acid modified antifreezing gelatin organohydrogel for low modulus, high toughness, and sensitive flexible strain sensor.

Current hydrogel strain sensors have met assorted essential requirements of wearing comfort, mechanical toughness, and strain sensitivity. However, an increment in the toughness of a hydrogel usually leads to an increase in elastic moduli that could be unfavorable for wearing comfort. In addition, traits of biofriendly and sustainability require synthesis of the hydrogels from natural polymer-based networks.

Bio-essential Inorganic Molecular Nanowires as a Bioactive Muscle Extracellular-Matrix-Mimicking Material.

Many physiochemical properties of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of muscle tissues, such as nanometer scale dimension, nanotopography, negative charge, and elasticity, must be carefully reproduced to fabricate scaffold materials mimicking muscle tissues. Hence, we developed a muscle tissue ECM-mimicking scaffold using MoSI inorganic molecular wires (IMWs). Composed of bio-essential elements and having a nanofibrous structure with a diameter of ∼1 nm and a negative surface charge with high stability, MoSI IMWs are ideal for mimicking natural ECM molecules.

Bioinspired Adenosine Triphosphate as an "All-In-One" Green Flame Retardant via Extremely Intumescent Char Formation.

The development of eco-friendly flame retardants is crucial due to the hazardous properties of most conventional flame retardants. Herein, adenosine triphosphate (ATP) is reported to be a highly efficient "all-in-one" green flame retardant as it consists of three essential groups, which lead to the formation of char with extreme intumescence, namely, three phosphate groups, providing an acid source; one ribose sugar, working as a char source; and one adenine, acting as a blowing agent. Polyurethane foam was used as a model flammable material to demonstrate the exceptional flame retardancy of ATP.

An Antibacterial Nanorobotic Approach for the Specific Targeting and Removal of Multiple Drug-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) causes diseases ranging from skin infections to lethal sepsis and has become a serious threat to human health due to multiple-drug resistance (MDR). Therefore, a resistance-free antibacterial therapy is necessary to overcome MDR MRSA infections. In this study, an antibacterial nanorobot (Ab-nanobot) is developed wherein a cell wall-binding domain (CBD)-endolysin, acting as a sensor, is covalently conjugated with an actuator consisting of an iron oxide/silica core-shell.

A study on the bio-applicability of aqueous-dispersed van der Waals 1-D material NbSe using poloxamer.

In this research, dispersion of a new type of one-dimensional inorganic material NbSe, composed of van der Waals bonds, in aqueous solution for bio-application study were studied. To disperse NbSe, which exhibits hydrophobic properties in water, experiments were carried out using a block copolymer (poloxamer) as a dispersant. It was confirmed that PPO, the hydrophobic portion of Poloxamer, was adsorbed onto the surface of NbSe, and PEO, the hydrophilic portion, induced steric hinderance to disperse NbSe to a size of 10 nm or less.

Statistical Characterization of the Morphologies of Nanoparticles through Machine Learning Based Electron Microscopy Image Analysis.

Although transmission electron microscopy (TEM) may be one of the most efficient techniques available for studying the morphological characteristics of nanoparticles, analyzing them quantitatively in a statistical manner is exceedingly difficult. Herein, we report a method for mass-throughput analysis of the morphologies of nanoparticles by applying a genetic algorithm to an image analysis technique. The proposed method enables the analysis of over 150,000 nanoparticles with a high precision of 99.

Hierarchical Surface Texturing of Hydroxyapatite Ceramics: Influence on the Adhesive Bonding Strength of Polymeric Polycaprolactone.

The tailored manipulation of ceramic surfaces gained recent interest to optimize the performance and lifetime of composite materials used as implants. In this work, a hierarchical surface texturing of hydroxyapatite (HAp) ceramics was developed to improve the poor adhesive bonding strength in hydroxyapatite and polycaprolactone (HAp/PCL) composites. Four different types of periodic surface morphologies (grooves, cylindric pits, linear waves and Gaussian hills) were realized by a ceramic micro-transfer molding technique in the submillimeter range.

High-throughput in-focus differential interference contrast imaging of three-dimensional orientations of single gold nanorods coated with a mesoporous silica shell.

Plasmonic gold nanorods (AuNRs) have been widely applied as optical orientation probes in many biophysical studies. However, characterizing the various three-dimensional (3D) orientations of AuNRs in the same focal plane of the objective lens is a challenging task. To overcome this challenge, we fabricated single AuNRs (10 nm × 30 nm) coated with either an elliptical or spherical mesoporous silica shell (AuNRs@mSiO).