Quantum Sensing for Real-Time Monitoring of Drug Efficacy in Synovial Fluid from Arthritis Patients.

Diamond-based relaxometry is a new technique that allows nanoscale magnetic resonance measurements. Here we present its first application in patient samples. More specifically, we demonstrate that relaxometry can determine the free radical load in samples from arthritis patients.

Fast, Broad-Band Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy with Diamond Widefield Relaxometry.

We present an alternative to conventional Electron Paramagnetic Resonance (EPR) spectroscopy equipment. Avoiding the use of bulky magnets and magnetron equipment, we use the photoluminescence of an ensemble of Nitrogen-Vacancy centers at the surface of a diamond. Monitoring their relaxation time (or T1), we detected their cross-relaxation with a compound of interest.

Applying NV center-based quantum sensing to study intracellular free radical response upon viral infections.

Although viruses are known to modify the free radical concentration in infected cells, the exact location and concentrations of such changes remain unknown. Although this information is important to understand the virus pathogenesis and design better anti-viral drugs or vaccines, obtaining it with the conventional free radical/ROS detection techniques is impossible. Here, we elucidate the utility of diamond magnetometry for studying the free radical response of baby hamster kidney-21 cells upon Semliki Forest virus infection.

Quantum Sensing of Free Radicals in Primary Human Dendritic Cells.

Free radicals are crucial indicators for stress and appear in all kinds of pathogenic conditions, including cancer, cardiovascular diseases, and infection. However, they are difficult to detect due to their reactivity and low abundance. We use relaxometry for the detection of radicals with subcellular resolution.

Fluorescent Nanodiamonds for Detecting Free-Radical Generation in Real Time during Shear Stress in Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells.

Free-radical generation is suspected to play a key role in cardiovascular diseases. Another crucial factor is shear stress. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECS), which form the lining of blood vessels, require a physiological shear stress to activate many vasoactive factors.

Micro Versus Macro - The Effect of Environmental Confinement on Cellular Nanoparticle Uptake.

While the microenvironment is known to alter the cellular behavior in terms of metabolism, growth and the degree of endoplasmic reticulum stress, its influence on the nanoparticle uptake is not yet investigated. Specifically, it is not clear if the cells cultured in a microenvironment ingest different amounts of nanoparticles than cells cultured in a macroenvironment (for example a petri dish). To answer this question, here we used J774 murine macrophages and fluorescent nanodiamonds (FND) as a model system to systematically compare the uptake efficiency of cells cultured in a petri dish and in a microfluidic channel.

Effect of medium and aggregation on antibacterial activity of nanodiamonds.

Fluorescent nanodiamonds are widely used as abrasives, optical or magnetic labels, in drug delivery or nanoscale sensing. They are considered very biocompatible in mammalian cells. However, in bacteria the situation looks different and results are highly controversial.

Optical Detection of Intracellular Quantities Using Nanoscale Technologies.

Optical probes that can be used to measure certain quantities with subcellular resolution give us access to a new level of information at which physics, chemistry, life sciences, and medicine become strongly intertwined. The emergence of these new technologies is owed to great advances in the physical sciences. However, evaluating and improving these methods to new standards requires a joint effort with life sciences and clinical practice.

Flow-Induced Long-Term Stable Slippery Surfaces.

Slippery lubricant-infused surfaces allow easy removal of liquid droplets on surfaces. They consist of textured or porous substrates infiltrated with a chemically compatible lubricant. Capillary forces help to keep the lubricant in place.

Toward Using Fluorescent Nanodiamonds To Study Chronological Aging in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

One of the theories aiming to explain cellular aging is the free radical theory of aging, which describes the possible role of increased production and accumulation of free radicals. Fluorescent nanodiamonds (FNDs) are proposed to provide a tool to detect these radicals, as they function as magnetic sensors that change their optical properties depending on their magnetic surrounding. Therefore, they could enable the study of aging at a molecular level and unravel the exact role of free radicals in this process.

Why is it difficult to wash aphids off from superhydrophobic kale?

Many varieties of the cabbage family have leaves covered with superhydrophobic epicuticular wax, which provides them with self-cleaning characteristics. Since the wax also lowers insect adhesion, rinsing of the leaves with water should be an effective way of removing the insects. Conversely, we report that superhydrophobicity of tuscan kale increases resistance of aphids to hydrodynamic removal.

Surface and Wetting Properties of Embiopteran (Webspinner) Nanofiber Silk.

Insects of the order Embioptera, known as embiopterans, embiids, or webspinners, weave silk fibers together into sheets to make shelters called galleries. In this study, we show that silk galleries produced by the embiopteran Antipaluria urichi exhibit a highly hydrophobic wetting state with high water adhesion macroscopically equivalent to the rose petal effect. Specifically, the silk sheets have advancing contact angles above 150°, but receding contact angle approaching 0°.

Inhibition of Condensation Frosting by Arrays of Hygroscopic Antifreeze Drops.

The formation of frost and ice can have negative impacts on travel and a variety of industrial processes and is typically addressed by dispensing antifreeze substances such as salts and glycols. Despite the popularity of this anti-icing approach, some of the intricate underlying physical mechanisms are just being unraveled. For example, recent studies have shown that in addition to suppressing ice formation within its own volume, an individual salt saturated water microdroplet forms a region of inhibited condensation and condensation frosting (RIC) in its surrounding area.

"Insensitive" to touch: fabric-supported lubricant-swollen polymeric films for omniphobic personal protective gear.

The use of personal protective gear made from omniphobic materials that easily shed drops of all sizes could provide enhanced protection from direct exposure to most liquid-phase biological and chemical hazards and facilitate the postexposure decontamination of the gear. In recent literature, lubricated nanostructured fabrics are seen as attractive candidates for personal protective gear due to their omniphobic and self-healing characteristics. However, the ability of these lubricated fabrics to shed low surface tension liquids after physical contact with other objects in the surrounding, which is critical in demanding healthcare and military field operations, has not been investigated.

Different shades of oxide: from nanoscale wetting mechanisms to contact printing of gallium-based liquid metals.

Gallium-based liquid metals are of interest for a variety of applications including flexible electronics, soft robotics, and biomedical devices. Still, nano- to microscale device fabrication with these materials is challenging because, despite having surface tension 10 times higher than water, they strongly adhere to a majority of substrates. This unusually high adhesion is attributed to the formation of a thin oxide shell; however, its role in the adhesion process has not yet been established.