Navigating the labyrinthine vasculature of the brain with standard surgical instruments can be incredibly challenging, even for the steadiest of hands. But with some robotic assistance, brain surgeons could potentially operate with far greater ease.

Researchers at Ohio State University have developed nanocarriers derived from mice skin cells that reduced lung inflammation in mice. Further research could lead to a treatment for acute respiratory distress syndrome and other conditions.

Dendritic cells are key orchestrators of the immune response, but most vaccination strategies don’t effectively target them. NIBIB-funded researchers have developed biodegradable nanoparticles that are designed to deliver mRNA cargo to dendritic cells in the spleen. Combined with another type of immunotherapy, their vaccine had robust antitumor effects in multiple mouse models.

Some people using antigen tests have experienced a negative test result only to find out that they have the virus. New research shows that repeat testing every other day increases the detection of the SARS-CoV-2 virus.

Researchers from Washington University in St. Louis have used ultrasound to nudge rodents into an energy-conserving state that mirrors a natural, hibernation-like survival mechanism known as torpor. The technique could help buy precious time for patients in critical care.

Nanozymes—artificial enzymes that can carry out pre-determined chemical reactions—could selectively activate a cancer drug within a tumor while minimizing damage to healthy tissue in a mouse model of triple negative breast cancer.

For most of our tissues and cells, a lack of oxygen, or hypoxia, is bad news. However, cancer cells can thrive in these conditions, rendering tumors less susceptible to anti-cancer treatments including radiation. Now, new research may offer a way to break through cancer’s hypoxia-induced defenses.

This fully wireless ultrasound patch, which can capture detailed medical information and wirelessly transmit the data to a smart device, could represent a major step forward in at-home health care technology.

With an eye toward early disease detection, synthetic biology engineers at the University of Wisconsin have designed and engineered bacteria that find and detect fragments of DNA shed from infectious pathogens.