Science | WPN World People News

The chemical stability and electrical properties of gallium nitride have made it a promising material for the development of biocompatible electronics, a range of devices including biosensors as well as interfaces for probing and controlling cellular growth and signaling. To improve the interface formed between probe material and cell or biosystem, surface topography and chemistry can be applied to modify the ways in which the device interacts with its environment. PC12 cells are cultured on as-grown planar, unidirectionally polished, etched nanoporous, and nanowire GaN surfaces with and without a physisorbed peptide sequence that promotes cell adhesion. While cells demonstrate preferential adhesion to roughened surfaces over as-grown, flat surfaces, the topography of that roughness also influences the morphology of cellular adhesion and differentiation in neurotypic cells. Addition of the peptide sequence generally contributes further to cellular adhesion and promotes development of stereotypic long, thin neurite outgrowths over alternate morphologies. The dependence of cell behavior on both the topographic morphology and surface chemistry is thus demonstrated, providing further evidence for the importance of surface modification for modulating bio-inorganic interfaces.

Will one-atom-thick layers of molybdenum disulfide, a compound that occurs naturally in rocks, prove to be better than graphene for electronic applications? There are many signs that might prove to be the case. But physicists from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw have shown that the nature of the phenomena occurring in layered materials are still ill-understood and require further research.

A bioactive and biocompatible material was designed and produced by engineers from Iran Polymer and Petrochemistry Research Center by using nanoparticles with the ability to quickly treat damaged bones.

Imagine that you are in a meeting with coworkers or at a gathering of friends. You pull out your cell phone to show a presentation or a video on YouTube. But you don't use the tiny screen; your phone projects a bright, clear image onto a wall or a big screen. Such a technology may be on its way, thanks to a new light-bending silicon chip developed by researchers at Caltech.