A clinical trial provides evidence that 3D-printed alternative nasal swabs work as well for COVID-19 diagnostic testing as commercial synthetic flocked nasal swabs. Given the ongoing need for widespread COVID-19 testing, the researchers conclude that 3D printing technology offers a viable, cost-efficient option to address swab supply shortages. Now, a multisite clinical trial led by…

Researchers have moved closer toward this goal by developing a nanopore sequencing platform that, for the first time, can detect the presence of nucleobases, the building blocks of DNA and RNA. Researchers at The University of Texas at Dallas have moved closer toward this goal by developing a nanopore sequencing platform that, for the first…

The remarkable genetic scissors called CRISPR/Cas9, the discovery that won the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, sometimes cut in places that they are not designed to target. To use CRISPR enzymes to edit gene sequences, scientists can tailor them to target a specific sequence within the three billion DNA base pairs in the human genome.…

Researchers have developed an approach to print skin equivalents, which may play a future role in facilitating the healing of chronic wounds. They used suspended layer additive manufacturing, creating a gel-like material to support the skin equivalent that can then support a second phase of gel injection. During printing, the skin layers are deposited within…

Scientists assess the dynamics of positron acoustic waves (PAWS) in EPI plasmas whilst under the influence of magnetic fields, or magnetoplasmas. The authors studied the changes in PAWs using a framework of Korteweg-de Vries (KdV) and modified Korteweg-de Vries (mKdV) equations finding a former led to compressive positron acoustic solitary waves (PASWs), whilst the latter…

Scientists are able to selectively knockout nucleons and preformed nuclear clusters from atomic nuclei using high-energy proton beams. In an experiment the existence of preformed helium nuclei at the surface of several tin isotopes could be identified in a reaction. The results confirm a theory, which predicts the formation of helium clusters in low-density nuclear…

Novel calculations have enabled the study of nearly 700 isotopes between helium and iron, showing which nuclei can exist and which cannot. Scientists report how they simulated for the first time using innovative theoretical methods a large region of the chart of nuclides based on the theory of the strong interaction. In a new study,…

A new study provides foundational information about SARS-CoV-2’s spike protein. The spike protein is found on the surface of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, and is responsible for its entry into host cells. Because of this function, it is the focus of most COVID-19 vaccines including the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna mRNA vaccines. «The spike…

A newly developed electrochemical actuator using specialized organic semiconductor nanotubes is likely to become a key factor for future researchers in the fields of robotics, bioelectronics and biomedicine. Currently in the early stages of development, the actuator will become a key part of research contributing to the future of robotic, bioelectronic and biomedical science. «Electrochemical…

Where do our elements come from? And how are they made? New research is flipping the script on those age-old nuclear astrophysics questions. The truth is out there — several light years away among the stars, to be exact. «I’m wearing a ring on my finger. That gold was made in space somehow. And we…