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A conformable mesh for the treatment of glioblastoma
A biodegradable implant — the μMESH, comprising an ordered array of micrometric polymeric strands deposited over a water-soluble microlayer — represents a powerful device to deploy complex combination therapies for the eradication of brain cancer and other malignancies. The compartmentalized μMESH can be efficiently loaded with small molecules, biologicals and nanomedicines. In the treatment of glioblastoma, the μMESH conforms to the surface of the resected cavity, establishes a localized high-concentration drug depot, and deploys deep into the malignant tissue a variety of therapeutic agents that would not spontaneously cross the blood/brain barrier. The μMESH micrometric architecture and mechanical flexibility facilitate its fine entanglement with the malignant mass, and dictate tumour eradication. The cover presents a μMESH in the act of wrapping around a glioblastoma tumour spheroid, demonstrating the ability to establish intimate interactions with the malignant tissue. The image was acquired by confocal microscopy with a 10× objective and results from the maximum intensity projection of multiple z-sections over a 200-μm-thick sample. In the tumour spheroid, U87-MG cells appear green (GFP+ cells) with blue nuclei (DAPI staining). The μMESH is loaded with Rhodamine B molecules returning polymeric strands with a red colouration.
Twisted bilayer graphene enables the realization of Josephson junctions and single electron transistors in a single, crystalline material using electric field gating only, thereby avoiding interfaces between dissimilar materials.
The memristor, in which an external electric field controls the formation and annihilation of conductive channels, has been described both as a missing electronic element and a memory and computational element. Here, their utility as building blocks for promising reflective and energy-efficient colour technology is described.
In this Review the authors discuss the biological role of extracellular vesicles and how they can be applied as drug carriers, focusing on the current state of their manufacturing and existing challenges.
In situ electrostatic control of two-dimensional superconductivity is commonly limited due to large charge carrier densities. Now, by means of local gates, electrostatic gating can define a Josephson junction in a magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene device, a single-crystal material.
Magic-angle twisted bilayer graphene exhibits a wide range of phases, such as metal, insulator and superconductor states. Now local electrostatic gating devices made from this two-dimensional material platform enable highly tunable Josephson junctions, edge tunnelling spectroscopy and single-electron transistor operation.
Semiconductor–superconductor hybrids are used for realizing complex quantum phenomena but are limited in the accessible magnetic field and temperature range. Now, hybrid devices made from InAs nanowires and epitaxially matched, single-crystal, atomically flat Pb films present superior characteristics, doubling the available parameter space.
Antiferromagnets are interesting materials for fast spintronics applications, but control of the antiferromagnetic order has been limited to bulk materials so far. Now, uniaxial strain is shown to align the Néel vector in MnPSe3 down to the monolayer limit.
Graphene promises long-distance transfer of spin information with concomitant high charge carrier mobility. Proximity coupling of bilayer graphene with the 2D interlayer antiferromagnetic CrSBr now enables active generation of spin currents in graphene both electrically and thermally.
A power generator exhibits enhanced output due to a dual-charge-carrier design. The voltage produced is constant yet competitive even under low relative humidity.
Surgical resection is the primary treatment strategy for glioblastoma multiforme, but the infiltrating nature of the tumour, coupled with its heterogeneity and the presence of the blood–brain barrier that hampers drug delivery, contributes to recurrence and poor prognosis. Here the authors engineer a mechanically flexible mesh that can adhere to the tumour resected cavity and release a combination of nanomedicines and small molecules in a controlled and sustained manner for tumour therapy.
Nanoparticle albumin bound paclitaxel (nab-PTX) is widely used in the clinic to treat different cancers, but the effect of albumin on the distribution of the drug in tumours is not clear. Here the authors show that the accumulation of nab-PTX in tumours is affected by signalling molecules involved in nutrient uptake and processing, which could be reprogrammed to increase the drug’s efficacy.