Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have discovered a new state of quantum matter. The state exists within a material that the team reports could lead to a new era of self-charging computers and ones capable of withstanding the challenges of deep space travel.
“It’s a new phase of matter, similar to how water can exist as liquid, ice or vapor,” said Luis A. Jauregui, professor of physics & astronomy at UC Irvine and corresponding author of the new paper in Physical Review Letters.
“It’s only been theoretically predicted—no one has ever measured it until now.”
New research into topological phases of matter may spur advances in innovative quantum devices. As described in a new paper published in the journal Nature Communications, a research team including Los Alamos National Laboratory scientists used a novel strain engineering approach to convert the material hafnium pentatelluride (HfTe5) to a strong topological insulator phase, increasing its bulk electrical resistance while lowering it at the surface, a key to unlocking its quantum potential.
“I’m excited that our team was able to show that the elusive and much-sought-after topological surface states can be made to become a predominant electrical conduction pathway,” said Michael Pettes, scientist with the Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies (CINT) at the Laboratory.
“This is promising for the development of types of quantum optoelectronic devices, dark matter detectors and topologically protected devices such as quantum computers. And the methodology we demonstrate is compatible for experimentation on other quantum materials.”
Natural nanoparticles have been found to exist in traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) decoctions. However, whether natural nanoparticles can influence the oral bioavailability of active compounds has not been elucidated. Using Xie-Bai-San decoction (XBSD) as an example, the purpose of this study was to isolate, characterize and elucidate the mechanism of the nanoparticles (N-XBSD) in XBSD, and further to explore whether the bioavailability of the main active compounds could be enhanced by N-XBSD.
N-XBSD were isolated from XBSD, and investigated its characterization and study of its formation mechanism, and evaluation of its ability to enhance bioavailability of active compounds.
The N-XBSD was successfully isolated with the average particle size of 104.53 nm, PDI of 0.27 and zeta potential of −5.14 mV. Meanwhile, all the eight active compounds were most presented in N-XBSD. Kukoamine B could self-assemble with mulberroside A or liquiritin to form nanoparticles, respectively. And the FT-IR and HRMS results indicated the possible binding of the ammonium group of kukoamine B with the phenolic hydroxyl group of mulberroside A or liquiritin, respectively. The established UPLC-MS/MS method was accurate and reliable and met the quantitative requirements. The pharmacokinetic behaviors of the N-XBSD and decoction were similar in rats. Most notably, compared to that of free drugs, the Cmax, AUC0-∞, AUC0-t, T1/2 and MRT0-∞ values of index compounds were the higher in N-XBSD, with a slower plasma clearance rate in rats.
The Chinese military is building sophisticated biological weapons and small-scale electronic tools made with nanotechnology that could be used in covert warfare, a major study warns.
“China’s invisible arsenals encompass a range of advanced weaponry that are distinctly focused on providing the Chinese Communist Party with a range of asymmetric warfare options, including the delivery of biological, biochemical and neurobiological weapons on target populations,” according to a report by three open-source intelligence analysts.
The People’s Liberation Army, or PLA, is developing nanoweapons using highly sophisticated microscopic materials that enhance the effects of biological weapons, according to the report, titled “In the Shadows of Science: Unravelling China’s Invisible Arsenals of Nanoweapons.” It was made public earlier this month.
As the world population is ageing rapidly, with over two billion people projected to be above the age of 60 by 2050, age-related brain disorders are on the rise. Living longer but in poor health is not only a daunting prospect, it also places a substantial burden on healthcare systems worldwide. The idea of being able to counteract the functional decline of our brain through rejuvenating interventions sounds therefore promising. The question is how can we identify compounds that have the potential to efficiently rejuvenate brain cells and to protect the ageing population from neurodegeneration? Prof. Antonio Del Sol and his teams of computational biologists, based both at the LCSB from the University of Luxembourg and at the CIC bioGUNE in Bilbao, used their machine learning expertise to tackle the challenge.
The researchers developed what is called an “ageing clock”, a computational tool designed to measure the biological age of cells, as opposed to their chronological age. Indeed, the organs and tissues of people of the same age can evolve differently over time depending on genetic and environmental factors, leading to different biological ages. These clocks are therefore useful tools to assess ageing at the molecular level and can help in understanding its causes and consequences.
The clock designed by the LCSB and CIC bioGune researchers is specific to the brain and uses gene expression information from 365 genes to make predictions. Using a machine learning approach, it was trained on data from healthy individuals, aged from 20 to 97, and could accurately predict their age. Further tests showed that the clock is able to estimate the biological age of different cell types in the brain, especially neurons. Lastly, by looking at the predicted biological ages for healthy individuals and for patients with neurological conditions, the researchers observed that patients exhibited a higher biological age.
“Our results tell us that the biological age of the brain cells calculated by our clock reflects the decline in brain function experienced by the patients, especially between 60 and 70, and is even correlated with the degree of neurodegeneration,” explains Dr Guillem Santamaria, first author of the study. “It supports the view of neurodegeneration as a form of accelerated ageing but, more importantly, the positive association between neurodegeneration and biological age suggests that the rejuvenating interventions identified by the clock could serve as neuroprotective agents.”
The aim of the researchers was to use the clock to find genetic or chemical interventions that would significantly shift back the biological age of brain cells. They explored the effect of thousands of compounds on neural progenitor cells and neurons and identified 453 unique rejuvenating interventions.
Among the identified compounds that have the potential to reverse the biological age of the two types of brain cells, several are known to extend lifespan in animal models and some are already used to treat neurological disorders, but the vast majority has not yet been studied in the context of health-or lifespan extension. “On the one hand, the fact that our computational platform identified drugs that have a known effect on brain function supports the idea that using the predicted effect of a compound on the biological age is an efficient way to evaluate its neuroprotective potential,” details Prof. Antonio Del Sol, head of the Computational Biology groups at the LCSB and CIC BioGUNE. “On the other, the results also highlight that our clock can help us find many new candidates that haven’t been studied before for their rejuvenating properties. It opens up a lot of new avenues.”
As a proof of concept of their approach, the researchers then tested three of the predicted compounds in mice, in collaboration with the team of Prof. Rubén Nogueiras at the Centre for Research in Molecular Medicine and Chronic Diseases. The administration of these drugs significantly reduced anxiety and slightly increased spatial memory in older mice, addressing two well-known symptoms associated with ageing. An analysis of gene expression showed that the combination of these compounds also led to a shift toward a younger phenotype. Altogether, these results show that a selection of compounds predicted to rejuvenate the brain did produce rejuvenation at the molecular level in the cortex of aged mice and had an impact on behavioural and cognitive functions.
Globally, the study, recently published in the journal Advanced Science, highlights the computational ageing clock developed by the researchers as a valuable resource for identifying brain-rejuvenating interventions with therapeutic potential in neurodegenerative diseases. It provides a strong foundation for further research. “The hundreds of compounds predicted by our platform require validation across multiple biological systems to assess their efficacy and safety, offering extensive opportunities for future therapeutic development,” concludes Prof. Antonio Del Sol.
Tesla’s Full Self-Driving technology is on the verge of a significant breakthrough, with potential approvals and expansions in multiple states and countries, paving the way for widespread adoption in robo-taxis and personal vehicles.
Questions to inspire discussion.
FSD and Robotaxi Progress.
🚗 Q: What is the most important catalyst for Tesla investors? A: Tesla’s Robo Taxi and FSD progress, with a 10x expansion in Austin area in 2 weeks, exponential increase in service area, and unsupervised FSD available for personal use in Texas and California by year-end.
Questions to inspire discussion.
Marketing and Promotion.
📣 Q: What marketing strategies should Tesla employ to promote FSD? A: Tesla should invest in advertising, highlighting the cost-effectiveness of their vehicles, and invite influencers and press for a special day to meet the AI team and spread the word about FSD.
Technical Advancements.
🧠 Q: What future improvements are planned for Tesla’s FSD? A: Tesla plans to expand FSD capabilities with 10x parameters in future iterations, making it an even more valuable feature and key brand differentiator.
Safety Benefits.
A research team from the School of Engineering (SENG) at the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has introduced comprehensive bio-inspired multiscale design strategies to address key challenges in the commercialization of perovskite solar cells: long-term operational stability. Drawing inspiration from natural systems, these strategies aim to enhance the efficiency, resilience, and adaptability of solar technologies.
Their paper, titled “Bio-Inspired Multiscale Design for Perovskite Solar Cells,” has been published in Nature Reviews Clean Technology.
The approaches focus on leveraging insights from biological structures to create solar cells that can better withstand environmental stressors and prolonged use.