Bioengineering a Single-Protein Junction.

Bioelectronics moves toward designing nanoscale electronic platforms that allow in vivo determinations. Such devices require interfacing complex biomolecular moieties as the sensing units to an electronic platform for signal transduction. Inevitably, a systematic design goes through a bottom-up understanding of the structurally related electrical signatures of the biomolecular circuit, which will ultimately lead us to tailor its electrical properties.

Robustness and versatility of a nonlinear interdependence method for directional coupling detection from spike trains.

The detection of directional couplings between dynamics based on measured spike trains is a crucial problem in the understanding of many different systems. In particular, in neuroscience it is important to assess the connectivity between neurons. One of the approaches that can estimate directional coupling from the analysis of point processes is the nonlinear interdependence measure L.

Magnetotactic Bacteria Powered Biohybrids Target E. coli Biofilms.

Biofilm colonies are typically resistant to general antibiotic treatment and require targeted methods for their removal. One of these methods includes the use of nanoparticles as carriers for antibiotic delivery, where they randomly circulate in fluid until they make contact with the infected areas. However, the required proximity of the particles to the biofilm results in only moderate efficacy.

Super-Resolution Microscopy Unveils Dynamic Heterogeneities in Nanoparticle Protein Corona.

The adsorption of serum proteins, leading to the formation of a biomolecular corona, is a key determinant of the biological identity of nanoparticles in vivo. Therefore, gaining knowledge on the formation, composition, and temporal evolution of the corona is of utmost importance for the development of nanoparticle-based therapies. Here, it is shown that the use of super-resolution optical microscopy enables the imaging of the protein corona on mesoporous silica nanoparticles with single protein sensitivity.

ImmunoPEGliposomes for the targeted delivery of novel lipophilic drugs to red blood cells in a falciparum malaria murine model.

Most drugs currently entering the clinical pipeline for severe malaria therapeutics are of lipophilic nature, with a relatively poor solubility in plasma and large biodistribution volumes. Low amounts of these compounds do consequently accumulate in circulating Plasmodium-infected red blood cells, exhibiting limited antiparasitic activity. These drawbacks can in principle be satisfactorily dealt with by stably encapsulating drugs in targeted nanocarriers.

Tumour-vessel-on-a-chip models for drug delivery.

Nanocarriers for drug delivery have great potential to revolutionize cancer treatment, due to their enhanced selectivity and efficacy. Despite this great promise, researchers have had limited success in the clinical translation of this approach. One of the main causes of these difficulties is that standard in vitro models, typically used to understand nanocarriers' behaviour and screen their efficiency, do not provide the complexity typically encountered in living systems.

Light-induced regulation of ligand-gated channel activity.

Unlabelled: The control of ligand-gated receptors with light using photochromic compounds has evolved from the first handcrafted examples to accurate, engineered receptors, whose development is supported by rational design, high-resolution protein structures, comparative pharmacology and molecular biology manipulations. Photoswitchable regulators have been designed and characterized for a large number of ligand-gated receptors in the mammalian nervous system, including nicotinic acetylcholine, glutamate and GABA receptors. They provide a well-equipped toolbox to investigate synaptic and neuronal circuits in all-optical experiments.

Capturing "Extraordinary" Soft-Assembled Charge-Like Polypeptides as a Strategy for Nanocarrier Design.

The rational design of nanomedicines is a challenging task given the complex architectures required for the construction of nanosized carriers with embedded therapeutic properties and the complex interface of these materials with the biological environment. Herein, an unexpected charge-like attraction mechanism of self-assembly for star-shaped polyglutamates in nonsalty aqueous solutions is identified, which matches the ubiquitous "ordinary-extraordinary" phenomenon previously described by physicists. For the first time, a bottom-up methodology for the stabilization of these nanosized soft-assembled star-shaped polyglutamates is also described, enabling the translation of theoretical research into nanomaterials with applicability within the drug-delivery field.

A Spatial-Context Effect in Recognition Memory.

We designed a novel experiment to investigate the modulation of human recognition memory by environmental context. Human participants were asked to navigate through a four-arm Virtual Reality (VR) maze in order to find and memorize discrete items presented at specific locations in the environment. They were later on tested on their ability to recognize items as previously presented or new.

Domiciliary VR-Based Therapy for Functional Recovery and Cortical Reorganization: Randomized Controlled Trial in Participants at the Chronic Stage Post Stroke.

Background: Most stroke survivors continue to experience motor impairments even after hospital discharge. Virtual reality-based techniques have shown potential for rehabilitative training of these motor impairments. Here we assess the impact of at-home VR-based motor training on functional motor recovery, corticospinal excitability and cortical reorganization.

Biophysical characterization of the association of histones with single-stranded DNA.

Background: Despite the profound current knowledge of the architecture and dynamics of nucleosomes, little is known about the structures generated by the interaction of histones with single-stranded DNA (ssDNA), which is widely present during replication and transcription.

Methods: Non-denaturing gel electrophoresis, transmission electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, magnetic tweezers.

Results: Histones have a high affinity for ssDNA in 0.

Differential neuronal and glial behavior on flat and micro patterned chitosan films.

Chitosan is a biodegradable natural polysaccharide that has been widely studied for regenerative purposes in the central nervous system. In this study we assessed the in vitro glial and neuronal cells response to chitosan either flat or patterned with grooves in the micrometric range. Chitosan demonstrated to be a good substrate for the attachment and growth of both neurons and glial cells.

Fast-degrading PLA/ORMOGLASS fibrous composite scaffold leads to a calcium-rich angiogenic environment.

The success of scaffold implantation in acellular tissue engineering approaches relies on the ability of the material to interact properly with the biological environment. This behavior mainly depends on the design of the graft surface and, more precisely, on its capacity to biodegrade in a well-defined manner (nature of ions released, surface-to-volume ratio, dissolution profile of this release, rate of material resorption, and preservation of mechanical properties). The assessment of the biological behavior of temporary templates is therefore very important in tissue engineering, especially for composites, which usually exhibit complicated degradation behavior.

Differential Electrochemical Conductance Imaging at the Nanoscale.

Electron transfer in proteins is essential in crucial biological processes. Although the fundamental aspects of biological electron transfer are well characterized, currently there are no experimental tools to determine the atomic-scale electronic pathways in redox proteins, and thus to fully understand their outstanding efficiency and environmental adaptability. This knowledge is also required to design and optimize biomolecular electronic devices.

Direct Laser Interference Patterning of CoCr Alloy Surfaces to Control Endothelial Cell and Platelet Response for Cardiovascular Applications.

The main drawbacks of cardiovascular bare-metal stents (BMS) are in-stent restenosis and stent thrombosis as a result of an incomplete endothelialization after stent implantation. Nano- and microscale modification of implant surfaces is a strategy to recover the functionality of the artery by stimulating and guiding molecular and biological processes at the implant/tissue interface. In this study, cobalt-chromium (CoCr) alloy surfaces are modified via direct laser interference patterning (DLIP) in order to create linear patterning onto CoCr surfaces with different periodicities (≈3, 10, 20, and 32 µm) and depths (≈20 and 800 nm).

Heparin: new life for an old drug.

Heparin is one of the oldest drugs, which nevertheless remains in widespread clinical use as an inhibitor of blood coagulation. The history of its identification a century ago unfolded amid one of the most fascinating scientific controversies turning around the distribution of credit for its discovery. The composition, purification and structure-function relationship of this naturally occurring glycosaminoglycan regarding its classical role as anticoagulant will be dealt with before proceeding to discuss its therapeutic potential in, among other, inflammatory and infectious disease, cancer treatment, cystic fibrosis and Alzheimer's disease.

Microbots Decorated with Silver Nanoparticles Kill Bacteria in Aqueous Media.

Water contamination is one of the most persistent problems of public health. Resistance of some pathogens to conventional disinfectants can require the combination of multiple disinfectants or increased disinfectant doses, which may produce harmful byproducts. Here, we describe an efficient method for disinfecting Escherichia coli and removing the bacteria from contaminated water using water self-propelled Janus microbots decorated with silver nanoparticles (AgNPs).

Regenerating Bone via Multifunctional Coatings: The Blending of Cell Integration and Bacterial Inhibition Properties on the Surface of Biomaterials.

In dentistry and orthopedics, it is well accepted that implant fixation is a major goal. However, an emerging concern is bacterial infection. Infection of metallic implants can be catastrophic and significantly reduce patient quality of life.

High conductance values in π-folded molecular junctions.

Folding processes play a crucial role in the development of function in biomacromolecules. Recreating this feature on synthetic systems would not only allow understanding and reproducing biological functions but also developing new functions. This has inspired the development of conformationally ordered synthetic oligomers known as foldamers.

Non-coding microRNAs for cardiac regeneration: Exploring novel alternatives to induce heart healing.

In recent years, different studies have revealed that adult mammalian cardiomyocytes have the capacity to self-renew under homeostatic conditions and after myocardial injury. Interestingly, data from animal models capable of regeneration, such as the adult zebrafish and neonatal mice, have identified different non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) as functional RNA molecules driving cardiac regeneration and repair. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge of the roles that a specific subset of ncRNAs, namely microRNAs (miRNA), plays in these animal models.

Oligonucleotide probes functionalization of nanogap electrodes.

Nanogap electrodes have attracted a lot of consideration as promising platform for molecular electronic and biomolecules detection. This is mainly for their higher aspect ratio, and because their electrical properties are easily accessed by current-voltage measurements. Nevertheless, application of standard current-voltages measurements used to characterize nanogap response, and/or to modify specific nanogap electrodes properties, represents an issue.

Identification of α7 Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Silent Agonists Based on the Spirocyclic Quinuclidine-Δ -Isoxazoline Scaffold: Synthesis and Electrophysiological Evaluation.

Compound 11 (3-(benzyloxy)-1'-methyl-1'-azonia-4H-1'-azaspiro[isoxazole-5,3'-bicyclo[2.2.2]octane] iodide) was selected from a previous set of nicotinic ligands as a suitable model compound for the design of new silent agonists of α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs).

The antigen-binding fragment of human gamma immunoglobulin prevents amyloid β-peptide folding into β-sheet to form oligomers.

The amyloid beta-peptide (Aβ) plays a leading role in Alzheimer's disease (AD) physiopathology. Even though monomeric forms of Aβ are harmless to cells, Aβ can aggregate into β-sheet oligomers and fibrils, which are both neurotoxic. Therefore, one of the main therapeutic approaches to cure or delay AD onset and progression is targeting Aβ aggregation.

iPS Cell Cultures from a Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker Patient with the Y218N PRNP Mutation Recapitulate tau Pathology.

Gerstmann-Sträussler-Scheinker (GSS) syndrome is a fatal autosomal dominant neurodegenerative prionopathy clinically characterized by ataxia, spastic paraparesis, extrapyramidal signs and dementia. In some GSS familiar cases carrying point mutations in the PRNP gene, patients also showed comorbid tauopathy leading to mixed pathologies. In this study we developed an induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cell model derived from fibroblasts of a GSS patient harboring the Y218N PRNP mutation, as well as an age-matched healthy control.