A team of scientists has synthesized a powerful new magnetic material that could reduce the dependence of the United States and other nations on rare earth elements produced by China.

Researchers believe understanding nanoparticles’ ability to influence our metabolic processing may be integral to mediating metabolic disorders and obesity, both of which are on the rise and have been linked to processed foods.

Many cancer patients survive treatment only to have a recurrence within a few years. Recurrences and tumor spreading are likely due to cancer stem cells that can be tough to kill with conventional cancer drugs. But now researchers have designed nanoparticles that specifically target these hardy cells to deliver a drug. The nanoparticle treatment worked far better than the drug alone in mice.

Scientists published first experimental results showing that ordinary nanocrystals possess intrinsic chirality and can be produced under normal conditions as a half-and-half mixture of mirror images of each other. The discovery of this fundamental property in nanocrystals opens new horizons in nano- and bio-technology and medicine, for instance, for such applications as targeted drug delivery.

Researchers have for the first time observed the growth of free nanoparticles in helium gas in a process similar to the decaffeination of coffee, providing new insights into the structure of nanoparticles.