[Paleopsych] Nanotechnology's progress and challenges addressed during ACS meeting

[Steve Hovland]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2005-03/acs-pa030805.php
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SAN DIEGO - From promising diagnostic tests to tomorrow's electronics, 
nanotechnology - the science and technology of the ultra-small - is getting 
bigger all the time. More than 60 presentations, in symposia ranging from 
medicine to the environment to business, highlight nanotechnology's 
progress and challenges during the 229th national meeting of the American 
Chemical Society, the world's largest scientific society, in San Diego, 
March 13-17. Highlights from selected symposia and research presentations 
are highlighted below:
Monday, March 14
How do you name a nanomaterial?-When the field of molecular genetics 
emerged, scientists often found themselves calling a new gene by different 
names. Nanotechnology researchers now face a similar challenge. What's 
more, this name game has regulatory importance: Today, the government ev  
aluates and regulates the toxicity of a named chemical entity without 
considering different-sized versions of it. But nanoparticles bear unique 
electronic and mechanical features. Now, to clear up these concerns and 
more, a researcher at Rice University is leading the call to build a 
nomenclature for nanotechnology. (IEC 116, Monday, March 14, 4:00 p.m., 
Hyatt Regency, Room Ford A, during the symposium "Nanotechnology and the 
Environment.")
Growing the business of nanotechnology - Since nanotechnology emerged, 
dozens of businesses in California have launched big dreams for tiny tools. 
Illustrating this boom is Nanosys, launched in 2002 in Palo Alto, Calif. 
Nanosys has built early versions of nano-enabled solar cells, flexible 
electronics, and nano chips for drug discovery research. Along the way, the 
company has formed strategic relationships with industry giants such as 
Intel, Dupont, In-Q-Tel, SAIC, Sharp, and Matsushita. The company hopes its 
platform technology will find success in renewable energy, defense, 
macroelectrics, healthcare and information technology. (COLL 121, Monday, 
March 14, 8:30 a.m., Convention Center, Room 22, during the symposium 
"Colloid and Surface Chemistry Award Symposium Honoring Paul Alivisatos.")
Tuesday, March 15
Bio-barcode may help diagnose Alzheimer's disease in living persons - 
Alzheimer's is hard to diagnose in living persons and is only definitively 
diagnosed upon autopsy. Now, in a preliminary study led by noted scientist 
Chad Mirkin, researchers at Northwestern University have used a 
"bio-barcode" assay to detect, in the spinal fluid of study participants, a 
brain protein thought to be associated with Alzheimer's. The bio-barcode 
assay fixes antibodies to magnetic particles and gold nanocrystals laced 
with strands of DNA, referred to as bar code DNA. Somewhat like a consumer 
bar code, these DNA barcodes are identified on a chip designed to sort and 
measure their concentrations. The assay also holds promise for detecting 
HIV, cancer and heart problems. It could be available to researchers within 
a year or two, according to the researchers. (ANYL 331, Tuesday, March 15, 
9:50 a.m., Convention Center, Room 29B, during the symposium, "ACS Nobel 
Laureate Signature Award Symposium: Spectroscopy at the Nanoscale.")
Wednesday, March 16
Quantum dots make colorful labels - Researchers at the University of 
California, Berkeley, and Quantum Dot Corporation in Hayward, Calif., have 
created fluorescent semiconductor nanocrystal labels for cells and other 
biological material. The researchers recently used light-scattering 
techniques to probe the distance between two gold nanocrystals at the 
single molecule level. These nanocrystals hold promise as flags of 
biological reactions in living cells that can serve as probes far longer 
than current dyes.(PHYS 241, Wednesday, March 16, 4:30 p.m., Convention 
Center, Room 15A, during the symposium "Novel Directions in Photonics: 
Nanophotonics and Biophotonics.")
Thursday, March 17
Building a greener nanotechnology - Researchers with the Oregon Nanoscience 
and Microtechnologies Institute (ONAMI) contend that nanotechnology and 
green chemistry are uniquely compatible. Nanoscience can enable the 
discovery of greener products and processes. At the same time, the tools of 
green chemistry can guide nano developments. A University of Oregon 
chemist, who last year received a patent for a greener method of 
synthesizing gold nanoparticles, explores this synergy. (I&EC 182, 
Thursday, March 17, 8:30 a.m., Hyatt Regency, Del Mar A, during the 
symposium "Nanotechnology and the Environment.")
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IEC 116 Naming nanotechnology: Creating a dictionary for the nanoscale
Vicki L. Colvin, Department of Chemistry, Rice University, MS 60, PO Box 
1892, Houston, TX 77251, colvin at rice.edu <mailto:colvin at rice.edu>
The importance of terminology and nomenclature to chemistry generally ca  
nnot be overstated. Systems of nomenclature and accurate terminology 
improve communication, enhance the utility of the scientific literature, 
and define how we teach subjects to students. The need for terminology in 
nanotechnology is growing substantially and this talk will address the 
ongoing efforts in this area. Both at the national and international level 
early approaches to this large problem will be highlighted. Additionally, 
this venue will permit ample audience input and commentary on the various 
emerging strategies for nomenclature systems for nanomaterials.
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COLL 121 Nanotechnology and business
Larry Bock, Nanosys Inc, 2625 Hanover St., Palo Alto, CA 94303, Fax: 858 
759 8299, LBock at nanosysinc.com <mailto:LBock at nanosysinc.com>, Phone: 
858-759-8693
I will give a non technical, business overview of how Nanosys is attempting 
to build a leading pure play nanotechnology venture. My presentation will 
describe how we are building an important platform technology focused on 
high performance, fully integrated, inorganic semiconductor nanostructures, 
how we are applying this platform technology in multiple muti-billion 
dollar industries from renewable energy to defense to macroelectroics 
(flexible electronics) to healthcare to information technology. I will also 
describe, how we capitalized the company in under three years with over 
$75M in equity and non equity capital and formed strategic relationships 
with such companies as Intel, Dupont, In-Q-Tel, SAIC and Matsushita.
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PHYS 241 New Nanocrystal assemblies for photonic structures
A. Paul Alivisatos, Department of Chemistry, University of California, 
Berkeley, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Materials Sciences 
Division, D-43A Hildebrand Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-1460, Fax: 
510-642-6911, alivis at uclink4.berkeley.edu 
<mailto:alivis at uclink4.berkeley.edu>, Phone: 510-643-7371
This talk will focus on two recent projects relating to applications of 
nanocrystals in photonics. The first project concerns the use of discrete 
groups of nanocrystals as novel biological labels. For example, colloidal 
quantum dot emission can be altered by the placement nearby of Au 
nanocrystals. Similarly, the distance between two Au nanocrystals can be 
probed at the single molecule level by light scattering. The second area of 
interest is in the creation of specific patterns of nanocrystals on 
lithographically patterned surfaces by capillary force assembly.
ANYL 331 Biobarcode assay: PCR-like sensitivity for proteins, nucleic 
acids, and small molecules
Chad Mirkin, Chemistry Dept, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, 
Evanston, IL 60208, Fax: 847-467-5123, Phone: 847-467-7302
An ultrasensitive method for detecting protein analytes has been developed. 
The system relies on magnetic microparticle probes with antibodies that 
specifically bind a target of interest [prostate specific antigen (PSA) in 
this case] and nanoparticle probes that are encoded with DNA that is unique 
to the protein target of interest and antibodies that can sandwich the 
target captured by the microparticle probes. Magnetic separation of the 
complexed probes and target followed by dehybridization of the 
oligonucleotides on the nanoparticle probe surface allows one to determine 
the presence of the target protein by identifying the oligonucleotide 
sequence released from the nanoparticle probe. Because the nanoparticle 
probe carries with it a large number of oligonucleotides per protein 
binding event, there is substantial amplification and one can detect 
protein targets in the 500 zeptomolar to picomolar concentration range. 
Comparable clinically accepted conventional assays for detecting the same 
targets have sensitivity limits of ~ 3 pM, 6 orders of magnitude less 
sensitive than what is observed with this method. The assay has been 
developed for prostrate cancer, HIV, cardiac markers and Alzheimers 
disease.
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IEC 182 Environmentally-benign nanomanufacturing: Merging green chemistry 
and nanoscience
James E. Hutchison, Department of Chemistry and Materials Science 
Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, hutch at uoregon.edu 
<mailto:hutch at uoregon.edu>
Nanotechnology promises considerable benefit to society and the 
environment. However, the products of nanotechnology and the manufacturing 
processes used to produce these products may pose threats to human health, 
the environment, worker safety, and security. The challenge will be to 
develop nanotechnology to provide maximum benefit, while minimizing the 
hazards. Green chemistry and engineering principles can be adopted to guide 
the early stages of product and process development to meet this challenge. 
Discoveries in nanoscience will provide new opportunities for the 
development of sustainable technologies. In this presentation, I will 
discuss how green chemistry and engineering principles can guide the 
responsible development of nanotechnology and how nanoscience can enable 
the discovery of greener products and processes. Examples of greener 
materials, processes and applications of nanoscience will be presented, 
with an emphasis on nanomanufacturing.