Oh, My Stars and Hexagons! DNA Code Shapes Gold Nanoparticles

ScienceDaily (Aug. 8, 2012) — DNA holds the genetic code for all sorts of biological molecules and traits. But University of Illinois researchers have found that DNA’s code can similarly shape metallic structures.

The team found that DNA segments can direct the shape of gold nanoparticles — tiny gold crystals that have many applications in medicine, electronics and catalysis. Led by Yi Lu, the Schenck Professor of Chemistry at the U. of I., the team published its surprising findings in the journal Angewandte Chemie.

“DNA-encoded nanoparticle synthesis can provide us a facile but novel way to produce nanoparticles with predictable shape and properties,” Lu said. “Such a discovery has potential impacts in bio-nanotechnology and applications in our everyday lives such as catalysis, sensing, imaging and medicine.”

Gold nanoparticles have wide applications in both biology and materials science thanks to their unique physicochemical properties. Properties of a gold nanoparticle are largely determined by its shape and size, so it is critical to be able to tailor the properties of a nanoparticle for a specific application.

Can Nature Parks Save Biodiversity?

ScienceDaily (Aug. 7, 2012) — The 14 years of wildlife studies in and around Madagascar‘s RanomafanaNational Park by Sarah Karpanty, associate professor of wildlife conservation at Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment, and her students are summarily part of a paper on biodiversity published July 25 by Nature‘s Advanced Online Publication and coming out soon in print.

As human activities put increasing pressures on natural systems and wildlife to survive, 200 scientists around the world carved up pieces of the puzzle to present a clearer picture of reality and find ways to mitigate the destructive forces at work.

Titled “Averting biodiversity collapse in tropical forest protected areas,” the paper was coordinated by William F. Laurance of the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute and James Cook University‘s Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Science and School of Marine and Tropical Biology.

ACNE (JERAWAT)

Acne vulgaris is a common disease in developed nations, one that has increased in frequency in the last half century, particularly among adult women. The precise mechanisms of the acne process are characterized by sebum overproduction, follicular hyperkeratinization, oxidative stress and inflammation.

Since inflammation is one of the earliest events to occur in the acne process, the influence of inflammatory mediators and subsequent free radical generation has become a major focus of experimental and clinical research.

Speculation that dietary factors can influence acne has been a matter of debate for decades, and emerging research is certainly suggesting that diet may indeed be an important factor, particularly in mediating the inflammation and oxidative stress of the acne process.

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