Nanobiotechnology seminars

Real-time measurement of local biomolecule concentrations in living tissue requires sensors that are stable, selective and minimally invasive. This seminar examines single-walled carbon nanotubes, whose durable near-infrared fluorescence and sensitivity to their surroundings support optical biosensing. Biopolymer functionalization gives the nanotubes biological compatibility and selectivity for particular molecular targets. Spectroscopy, microscopy and machine-learning-assisted analysis are used to characterize sensor interactions and extract biological information, with applications spanning live-cell imaging, wearable sensing and continuous monitoring.

Richard Huang investigates how DNA nanostructures deform under uneven hydrodynamic forces, a question relevant to drug delivery, vaccines and biosensors. Coarse-grained molecular dynamics and mechanical models first examine linear and circular DNA in extensional flow. Drag concentrates tension near the middle of linear duplexes, disrupting base pairs and causing overstretching. Deforming minicircles straighten along their sides while concentrating bending into opposing tips and localized kinks. Models based on DNA elasticity and hydrodynamic-force distributions explain these responses, then extend to wireframe DNA origami to study force transmission and how local structural transitions produce whole-particle deformation. The results inform structures designed for stability or controlled deformation in flow. Online via Zoom. Friday 2 October 2026, 12:00–13:00 EDT (America/New_York; UTC−4). Open the Zoom link on the official event page; the audience explicitly includes the public. Richard Huang is affiliated with MIT. Organized by MIT Department of Mathematics — Computational Research in Boston and Beyond Seminar.

Leonardo Fernandes Fraceto explores the development of nanoherbicides for more efficient, sustainable weed control. This Spanish-language webinar covers design strategies, interactions between nanomaterials and plants, controlled release, reduced herbicide doses and potential reductions in environmental impact. It examines how these principles could support more precise crop management and discusses the practical benefits, barriers and opportunities associated with adopting nanoherbicides in real agricultural systems. Speaker: Dr. Leonardo Fernandes Fraceto, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Brazil. The registration page also lists Dr. Ingrid Montes, Universidad de Puerto Rico, Recinto de Río Piedras. Co-produced by ACS Webinars and Sociedad Química de México. Wednesday 30 September 2026, 14:00–15:00 America/New_York (EDT); the live registration page confirms 20:00 CEST. Online via Zoom Events, free registration required. Follow Regístrese Gratuitamente on the ACS event page to the verified Zoom Events registration page. A free ACS ID may be required. Slides are scheduled to be available on the webinar day.

Bowen Li explains how ionizable lipids are designed for lipid nanoparticles that deliver messenger RNA. The seminar covers combinatorial and machine-learning-guided design, four-component reactions for rapidly producing lipid libraries, and barcoded screening in living systems to identify formulations targeting organs and cells, including lungs, T cells and tumours. It then examines applications of AI-guided nanoparticle platforms to mRNA therapeutics. Li is an Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair at the University of Toronto's Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy. Online via Zoom. Thursday 24 September 2026, 11:00–12:00 Eastern Daylight Time (America/New_York; UTC−4). Use Join via Zoom on Western University's event page. The stated audience includes researchers, students, alumni and the general public. Organized by Western University's Western Bioinformatics Research Seminar.

Wearable sensors that detect and quantify biomarkers in retrievable biofluids (e.g., interstitial fluid, sweat, tears) provide information on human dynamic physiological and psychological states. This information can transform health and wellness by providing actionable feedback. Due to outdated and insufficiently sensitive technologies, current on-body sensing systems have capabilities limited to pH, and a few high-concentration electrolytes, metabolites, and nutrients. As such, wearable sensing systems cannot detect key low-concentration biomarkers indicative of stress, inflammation, metabolic, and reproductive status. We are revolutionizing sensing. Our electronic biosensors detect virtually any signaling molecule or metabolite at ultra-low levels. We have monitored serotonin, dopamine, cortisol, phenylalanine, estradiol, progesterone, and glucose in blood, sweat, interstitial fluid, and tears. The sensors are based on modern nanoscale semiconductor transistors that are straightforwardly scalable for manufacturing. We are developing sensors for >40 biomarkers for personalized continuous monitoring (e.g., smartwatch, wearable patch) that will provide feedback for treating chronic health conditions (e.g., perimenopause, stress disorders, phenylketonuria). Moreover, our sensors will enable female fertility monitoring and the adoption of more healthy lifestyles to prevent disease and improve physical and cognitive performance.

Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman explain the scientific development of messenger RNA as a therapeutic platform. Their lectures address why laboratory-produced RNA can trigger inflammatory responses and how modification of its nucleosides changes immune recognition and improves protein production. The programme connects those molecular findings with the practical challenges of making RNA stable and delivering it into cells, including lipid-nanoparticle formulations. It follows the development of modified mRNA from a difficult experimental material to a foundation for vaccines and other therapeutic strategies. The lectures cover both the discovery of the relevant RNA biology and the engineering needed to make that biology useful for inducing desired proteins and immune responses.

Proteins and membranes form remarkably complex structures that are key to intracellular compartmentalization, cargo transport, and cell morphology. Despite this wealth of examples in living systems, we still lack design principles for controlling membrane morphology in synthetic systems. With experiments and simulations, we show that even the simple case of spherical or rod-shaped nanoparticles binding to lipid-bilayer membrane vesicles results in a remarkably rich set of morphologies that can be reliably controlled via the particle binding energy. When the binding energy is weak relative to a characteristic membrane-bending energy, vesicles adhere to one another and form a soft solid gel, which is a useful platform for controlled release. With larger binding energy, a transition from partial to complete wrapping of the nanoparticles causes a remarkable vesicle destruction process culminating in rupture, nanoparticle-membrane tubules, and vesicle inversion. We have explored the behavior across a wide range of parameter space. These findings help unify the wide range of effects observed when vesicles or cells are exposed to nanoparticles. They also show how they open the door to a new class of vesicle-based, closed-cell gels that are more than 99% water and can encapsulate and release on demand. I will discuss how triggering membrane remodeling could lead to shape-responsive systems in the future.