Nanotubes from waste plastic
Researchers claim to have hit on a way to transform end-of-life plastics into valuable carbon nanotubes (CNTs), so potentially helping to reduce the burden of future plastic waste.
Enigma machine for cells
Cells deliver biological signals to their neighbours via membrane-bound sac-like structures called extracellular vesicles (EVs), containing a cocktail of DNA, RNA and proteins. Now, scientists in Australia have devised a new method for characterising EVs, which vary mostly from 30 to 300nm in diameter (Nanoscale Horiz., 2018, 3, 430). Their method has been compared to a biological Enigma machine since it could decipher crucial biological messages and help diagnose and even treat diseases.