Themed collection Journal of Materials Chemistry B Emerging Investigators

Journal of Materials Chemistry B profiles contributors to the Emerging Investigators 2021 issue.

Nanoscience has enabled the electrical study of individual biomolecules. This perspective presents the nascent field of RNA BioMolecular Electronics, overviewing the main developments and exploring recent and future potential applications.

Nanoparticle-mediated surfactant therapy in patients with severe COVID-19.

This review focuses on recent advances in multifunctional high-Z nanomaterials for radiotherapeutic-based multimodal synergistic cancer therapy.

Severe peripheral nerve injuries are threatening the life quality of human beings.

This review summarized the recent advances of manganese oxide nanomaterials for cancer immunotherapy, covering adjusting an immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment, inducing immunogenic cell death, immunoadjuvants for nanovaccines and so on.

This review article highlights recent research progress on the NIR-responsive nanocomposite hydrogels, focusing on their preparation, properties, applications and future prospectus.

This review summarizes catalytic mechanisms, regulatory factors, measurement methods and various applications of SOD-like nanozymes, as well as proposes the current challenges and prospects in the development of SOD-like nanozymes.

This paper reviews the recent progress in nitric oxide (NO) donors, biomaterial vectors, biomaterial-based NO delivery systems and NO synthetic enzyme mimics, and emphasizes the application potentials of NO releasing biomaterials in chronic wound healing.

This review summarizes the recent developments in different NIR-based nanomedicine for cancer therapy.

This review introduces naturally-occurring saturated fatty acids (NSFAs) and their biomedical applications, including controlled drug release, targeted drug delivery, cancer therapy, antibacterial treatment, and tissue engineering.

Recent advances in the design, fabrication, and applications of biomacromolecule-based photo-thermal agents are summarized. Cell membranes, proteins, nucleotides and polysaccharides are involved. Perspectives and challenges are also presented.

This review describes some of the recent developments in DNA-based techniques for ribonuclease detection and discusses methodologies, assay metrics, screening of ribonuclease inhibitors, and future potential.

The present review highlights the developments in polysaccharide nanoparticles with a particular focus on applications in biomedicine, cosmetics and food.

We present lyophilized heparin microgels which can be directly rehydrated with epidermal growth factor and mixed with PEG microgels to form heterogenous MAP scaffolds. These EGF-releasing MAP scaffolds promote accelerated dermal wound healing.

Here, we found that the handedness and CPL properties of G-quartet materials highly depends on its formation kinetics.

pH-Sensitive branched β-glucan-modified liposomes promote antigen uptake and activation of dendritic cells in vitro, inducing anti-tumor immune responses in vivo.

Vancomycin (Van) is an antibiotic of choice for many drug resistant infections but cannot be given orally due to its poor permeability. Encapsulation of Vancomycin within MSNs improved its gastrointestinal permeation and provided controlled release.

A ferroptosis nano-prodrug (SSZ–Fe²⁺@DSSD) that can generate intercellular ROS and inhibit the system x_c⁻-GSH-GPX4 pathway to enhance the cancer ferrotherapy.

A ‘smart’ aptamer-functionalized catch–transport–release system was developed with facile fabrication for continuous, selective, high-throughput label-free cell sorting.

The chirality of amino acids plays a key role in many biochemical processes, with the development of spectroscopic analysis methods for the chiral differentiation of amino acids being significant.

The effect of nanoparticle (NP) internalization and subsequent degradation rate on cell lifespan has emerged as an important consideration for nanomedicine design, as macrophages and other phagocytes are primary clearance mechanisms of administered NP formulations.

Rationally designed, 3D-printed architectures can effectively decouple the mechanical and electrical properties of conducting polymer hydrogels.

Carambola-like Bi₂Te₃ superstructures endow Bi₂Te₃@PEG with enhanced photoabsorption in the near-infrared region, making them a promising tool for highly efficient photothermal therapy in the second near-infrared biowindow.

Facile-regulation of the multi-enzyme-mimicking activities and effective guidelines from radar analysis established here advance the further biomedical applications of ceria-based nanozymes.

This paper describes the development and antibacterial activity of a 2D nitric oxide releasing nanocomposite with a mesoporous structure inspired by nature's diatoms.

Cu_2−xS-conjugated upconverting nanocomposites with an outstanding photothermal killing effect and a PT-enhanced CDT effect for NIR-II light-induced enhanced chemodynamic/photothermal therapy of cancer.

Hyaluronic acid (HA) is present at sites of ongoing fibronectin fibrillogenesis (fibrillar adhesions) and necessary for efficient fibronectin fibrillogenesis. As a result, fibronectin deposition can be enhanced by exogenous HA.

Tannic acid cross-linked dynamic hydrogels hybridized with tannic acid reduced silver nanoparticles shows multi-functional properties including dual stimuli responsive drug release, anti-bacterial and anti-reactive oxygen species abilities.