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Sifting Out Cure For HIV: Special Ceramic Membranes Could Filter Virus From Blood

Date: 2.3.2007 

HIV may one day be able to be filtered from human blood saving the lives of millions of people, thanks to a world-first innovation by Queensland University of Technology scientists. QUT scientists have developed specially designed ceramic membranes for nanofiltration, which are so advanced they have the potential to remove viruses from water, air and blood. Associate Professor Huaiyong Zhu, from QUT's School of Physical and Chemical Sciences, is leading the development of these membranes, also known as nano-mesh, and said preliminary research had proved it successful in removing viruses from water. Nanofiltration is the filtration of minute particles using a filter with extremely small pores. "If we can remove compounds from liquids and viruses from water, then there may also be potential to remove HIV from blood," Dr Zhu said.... Whole article: "www.sciencedaily.com":[ http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/02/070215132254.htm]

Blood made suitable for all - Scientists have discovered enzymes that can efficiently convert blood groups A, B and AB into the 'universal' O group — which can be given to anyone but is always in short supply The two novel glycosidase enzymes were identified in bacteria by an international team led by Henrik Clausen of the University of Copenhagen in Denmark The ABO blood-type system is based on the presence or absence of the sugar-based antigens 'A' and 'B' on red blood cells Whole article: www (3.4.2007)

Smart Thin Film Membranes Adopt Properties Of Guest Molecules - Virginia Tech researchers announced last year that they had created a nanostructured membrane that incorporates DNA base pairs in order to impart molecular recognition and binding ability to the synthetic material The research was presented as an invited talk at the 233rd national meeting of the American Chemical Society in Chicago March 25-29 Chemistry professor Tim Long's research group, students affiliated with the Macromolecule and Interfaces Institute (MII) at Virginia Tech, and the U Whole article: www (2.4.2007)

Biologists Learn Structure Of Enzyme Needed To Power 'Molecular Motor' - Researchers at Purdue University and The Catholic University of America have discovered the structure of an enzyme essential for the operation of "molecular motors" that package DNA into the head segment of some viruses during their assembly The enzyme, called an ATPase, provides energy to run the motor needed to insert DNA into the capsid, or head, of the T4 virus, which is called a bacteriophage because it infects bacteria The article's lead author is Siyang Sun, a postdoctoral research associate working in Rossmann's lab Findings are detailed in a paper published March 22 in the journal Molecular Cell The DNA is a complete record of a virus' properties, and the capsid protects this record from damage and ensures that the virus can reproduce by infecting a host organism Energy to run the packaging motor is produced when Whole article: http://www (27.3.2007)

All Types of Carbon Nanotubes Penetrate Wide Variety of Cell Membranes - Over the past two years, researchers have demonstrated repeatedly that certain types of carbon nanotubes are among the most effective materials known for transporting proteins, genes, and drug molecules across the cell membrane Now, an attempt to better understand this process has found that virtually any type of carbon nanotube can enter a wide variety of cell types Reporting its work in the journal Nature Nanotechnology, a group headed by Kostas Kostarelos, Ph The goal of this study was to develop guidelines that would help investigators create the most effective nanodevice for delivering therapeutic agents to specific types of cells To the surprise of the researchers, there appeared to be little difference in nanotube uptake, either by type of nanotube or type of cell For example, using chemicals known to block endocytosis, a major mechanism for nanoparticle uptake, had little effect on the uptake of carbon nanotubes even though the investigators had already shown that cells can use endocytosis to take up carbon nanotubes Whole article: www (27.2.2007)

50 atoms thick membrane sorts individual molecules - A newly designed porous membrane, so thin it's invisible edge-on, may revolutionize the way doctors and scientists manipulate objects as small as a molecule The 50-atom thick filter can withstand surprisingly high pressures and may be a key to better separation of blood proteins for dialysis patients, speeding ion exchange in fuel cells, creating a new environment for growing neurological stem cells, and purifying air and water in hospitals and clean-rooms at the nanoscopic level At more than 4,000 times thinner than a human hair, the new barely-there membrane is thousands of times thinner than similar filters in use today "It's amazing, we have a material as thin as some of the molecules it's sorting, and even riddled with holes, but can withstand enough pressure to make real-world nano-filtering a practical reality," says research associate Christopher Striemer, co-creator of the membrane The membrane is a 15-nanometer-thick slice of the same silicon that's used every day in computer-chip manufacturing He used such a thin piece of silicon—only about 50 atoms thick—because it would allow him to use an electron microscope to see the crystal structure in his samples, formed with different heat treatments Striemer found that as parts of the silicon contracted into crystals, holes opened up in their wakes In talks with Striemer and Fauchet, James L Whole article: http://www (18.2.2007)

 


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