Articles in 2023

Organic and inorganic nanoparticles have different clearance mechanisms from the brain resulting in different biological fates and retention times.

Nanoparticle clearance is critical for safety and therapeutic applicability. Here the authors report the modulatory role of microglial extracellular vesicles on the brain clearance of organic and inorganic nanoparticles and provide a strategy to control their intracerebral fate.

Electrochemical carbon dioxide (CO₂) reduction in acid with a nano-structured tandem catalyst achieves high single-pass conversion efficiency and selectivity to useful C–C coupled products, bringing the process closer to commercial viability.

Nanoparticles naturally accumulate in the liver; this can be a major limitation to any therapy needing delivery to other organs or tissues. Here the authors review the reason for predominant liver uptake and explore different strategies used to target non-viral gene delivery nanoparticles to other organs and tissues.

Conserved regions of the circular DNA sequence of the M13mp18 bacteriophage, which is used as a scaffold for DNA origami construction, are targeted with specific hybridization-chain-reaction probes. The probes enable sensitive detection of DNA origami nanostructures in cells, organoids and tissues to assess their biodistribution and stability.

Using fluorinated elastomers in the fabrication of soft neural probes is shown to enhance spatiotemporal recording capability at single-neuron resolution within the central nervous system of rodents. Other soft encapsulation materials could be similarly engineered for high-resolution, long-lasting bioelectronics.

Fluorinated elastomers as photoresists in the fabrication of soft neural probes are used to enhance the spatiotemporal recording capability at single-neuron resolution within the central nervous system of rodents.

A biohybrid, leaf-spring design of DNA origami functions as a pulsating nanoengine that exploits the DNA-templated RNA transcription mechanism while consuming nucleoside triphosphates as fuel. The nanoengine also drives a nanomechanical follower structure.

Directionality of nonlinear emission from a dielectric metasurface is controlled by fine-tuning the relative time delay and polarization of two pulsed pump beams.

Electric field tunable interlayer excitons in a van der Waals bilayer emit at an energy of twice the band gap.

This Perspective discusses the current understanding of extracellular vesicles within the context of their movement into and out of blood circulation, with an outlook on leveraging extracellular vesicle nanobiology for mechanistic insights as well as diagnostic and nanotherapeutic applications in both physiological and pathological contexts.

Graphene multistacks with four or five layers show the signature of correlated electronic states both in and out of a magnetic field.

This year’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry recognizes a milestone for the entire nanotechnology field.

Using hydrogel nanovials to capture single mesenchymal stromal cells and their growth factor secretions, the authors link cell secretion to the transcriptome for thousands of cells, SEC-seq, enabling the study of secretion-associated cell states and mechanisms in therapeutic cell types.

Professor Louis Brus of Columbia University tells Nature Nanotechnology about his first encounter with the world of colloidal quantum dots, the beginning of a journey that has earned him this year’s Nobel Prize in Chemistry (together with Aleksey Yekimov and Moungi Bawendi). He also offers insightful advice to young scientists along the way.

This Review aims to spur developments in next-generation functional materials by highlighting design rules to interconnect length and timescales.

The interference between two frequency-degenerate upconversion processes enables a metasurface-based, all-optical routing by controlling the phase delay between pump beams.

The level of immune response in cancer vaccines can limit application. Here, an immune mobilization strategy, using bacteria-derived nanovesicles, enhances therapeutic outcomes of tumour vaccination by stimulating interleukin-1β secretion to elicit trained immunity with lineage shifts and epigenetic changes in myeloid progenitor pools.

High-energy interlayer excitons in van der Waals semiconducting transition metal dichalcogenides lie far above the bandgap and emit in the ultraviolet range.

The Review discusses epitaxial quantum dot devices emitting in the telecom bands for quantum network devices.