Nano Technology
Nanomedicine and the COVID-19 vaccines

Published
2 months agoon
Two nanoparticle-based vaccines close to obtaining approval by the US Food and Drug Administration could represent a giant step in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
On 18 November 2020, BioNtech and Pfizer announced the final results of their COVID-19 vaccine phase 3 clinical trial1. Only a couple of days earlier, Moderna had also revealed the preliminary outcome of their phase 3 study2. With a claimed efficacy in preventing infection of 95% and 94.5%, respectively, BNT162b2 — the vaccine developed by the small German start-up and the giant American pharma — and mRNA-1273 — developed by the Cambridge-based biotech company in collaboration with the National Institutes of Health — are on route to becoming the first prophylactic measures against SARS-CoV-2 infection.

Although both candidates need to tick a few more boxes before they might receive approval from the US Food and Drug Administration3, they scream innovation. If approved, they would be the first messenger RNA (mRNA)-based vaccines hitting clinical use.
This new class of DNA- and RNA-based vaccines deliver the genetic sequence of specific viral proteins to the host cells using nanotechnology platforms. Traditional vaccines instead trigger immune responses upon injection of entire viruses, either as attenuated live viruses, inactivated viruses or engineered viruses, into the body. Both types of vaccines are being tested against COVID-19 in clinical trials4.
With respect to other approaches, mRNA-based therapies have several advantages. mRNA delivery is safer than whole virus or DNA delivery as mRNA is not infectious and cannot be integrated into the host genome; while DNA needs to reach the nucleus to be decoded, mRNA is processed directly in the cytosol; mRNA has a short half-life, which can be regulated by molecular design; finally, it is immunogenic, which might represent an advantage for vaccine design, yet its immunogenicity can be modulated with molecular engineering techniques5. However, to be safely and efficiently transported in vivo without being degraded in the circulation, and to reach the cytosol across the cellular plasma membrane, mRNA needs a carrier. For many mRNA-based therapeutics, including BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273, the vehicles of choice are lipid nanoparticles (although other materials have also been used)5. Complexed with positively-charged lipids, mRNA is more stable and resistant to RNase-mediated degradation and forms self-assembled virus-sized particles that can be administered via different routes6. Once endocytosed, the lipid nanoparticles promote endosomal escape, and release their genetic cargo in the cytosol, where the mRNA is translated into antigenic proteins, kick-starting the immune system machinery into producing neutralizing antibodies. Both BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273 deliver mRNA encoding genetic variants of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that are more stable and immunogenic than the natural protein. A current drawback of these formulations is that their long-term storage requires low temperatures, posing logistical hurdles to their potential distribution and administration, in particular for regions of the global south.
Nonetheless, these vaccines are a huge achievement for molecular medicine and biotechnology. They also represent a big milestone for nanomedicine, which has struggled to gain mainstream recognition so far due to translation challenges. They are a success for all those scientists who have worked to optimize nanoformulations for the efficient packaging and safe delivery of genetic material. They epitomize some of the ideas behind the concept of drug delivery, and the founding principles of nanomedicine — that biocompatible rationally engineered materials, thanks to their nano-size and physicochemical characteristics, can protect drug cargos from degradation and offer control over their biodistribution and intracellular localization and release.
Nanomedicine approaches, especially for cancer therapies, have often led to underwhelming results when translated from the pre-clinical to the clinical arena due to the complex and still poorly understood nature of the nano–bio interactions. The latest evidence suggests that in areas such as vaccine development the odds for a nanomedicine-based approach are more favourable7,8. These strategies moreover are scalable and versatile, since mRNA can be engineered using standard laboratory techniques. This means that they can be easily and quickly adapted to produce new vaccines against future epidemics.
BNT162b2 and mRNA-1273 would not be the first nanoformulations to be approved for human use9,10. If successful, however, they would help to mitigate a global health crisis of unprecedented dimensions in modern history, demonstrating an impactful application of nanomedicine at a global scale and raising awareness about its potential benefits to the widest audience.
References
- 1.
Pfizer and BioNTech conclude phase 3 study of COVID-19 vaccine candidate, meeting all primary efficacy endpoints. Pfizer https://www.pfizer.com/news/press-release/press-release-detail/pfizer-and-biontech-conclude-phase-3-study-covid-19-vaccine (2020).
- 2.
Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine candidate meets its primary efficacy endpoint in the first interim analysis of the phase 3 COVE study. Moderna https://investors.modernatx.com/news-releases/news-release-details/modernas-covid-19-vaccine-candidate-meets-its-primary-efficacy (2020).
- 3.
Expert reaction to Pfizer and BioNTech reporting interim results from phase 3 COVID-19 vaccine trial. Science Media Centre https://www.sciencemediacentre.org/expert-reaction-to-pfizer-and-biontech-reporting-interim-results-from-phase-3-covid-19-vaccine-trial (2020).
- 4.
Corum, J., Wee, S.-L. & Zimmer, C. Coronavirus vaccine tracker. The New York Times https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2020/science/coronavirus-vaccine-tracker.html (2020).
- 5.
Pardi, N., Hogan, M. J., Porter, F. W. & Weissman, D. Nat. Rev. Drug Discov. 17, 261–279 (2018).
- 6.
Pardi, N. et al. J. Control. Release 217, 345–351 (2015).
- 7.
Shin, M. D. et al. Nat. Nanotechnol. 15, 646–655 (2020).
- 8.
Florindo, H. F. et al. Nat. Nanotechnol. 15, 630–645 (2020).
- 9.
Anselmo, A. C. & Mitragotri, S. Bioeng. Transl. Med. 4, e10143 (2019).
- 10.
Akinc, A. et al. Nat. Nanotechnol. 14, 1084–1087 (2019).
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Nanomedicine and the COVID-19 vaccines. Nat. Nanotechnol. (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41565-020-00820-0

You may like
-
Payments Startup Payoneer in Merger Talks With SPAC
-
Acamar Partners Acquisition Corporation (ACAM) Shareholders Approve CarLotz Deal
-
Glaciers on Mars likely didn’t form during a single ice age event
-
Critical Cisco SD-WAN Bugs Allow RCE Attacks
-
NVIDIA Gamers Face DoS, Data Loss from Shield TV Bugs
-
Michael Moe, fresh from raising $225M for education-focused SPAC, set for another free Startup Bootcamp
Nano Technology
Scientists synthetize new material for high-performance supercapacitors

Published
7 hours agoon
January 20, 2021
Home > Press > Scientists synthetize new material for high-performance supercapacitors
![]() |
Photo: modified rGO supercapacitor electrodes |
Abstract:
Scientists of Tomsk Polytechnic University jointly with colleagues from the University of Lille (Lille, France) synthetized a new material based on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) for supercapacitors, energy storage devices. The rGO modification method with the use of organic molecules, derivatives of hypervalent iodine, allowed obtaining a material that stores 1.7 times more electrical energy. The research findings are published in Electrochimica Acta academic journal (IF: 6,215; Q1).
Scientists synthetize new material for high-performance supercapacitors
Tomsk, Russia | Posted on January 19th, 2021
A supercapacitor is an electrochemical device for storage and release of electric charge. Unlike batteries, they store and release energy several times faster and do not contain lithium.
A supercapacitor is an element with two electrodes separated by an organic or inorganic electrolyte. The electrodes are coated with an electric charge accumulating material. The modern trend in science is to use various materials based on graphene, one of the thinnest and most durable materials known to man. The researchers of TPU and the University of Lille used reduced graphene oxide (rGO), a cheap and available material.
“Despite their potential, supercapacitors are not wide-spread yet. For further development of the technology, it is required to enhance the efficiency of supercapacitors. One of the key challenges here is to increase the energy capacity.
It can be achieved by expanding the surface area of an energy storage material, rGO in this particular case. We found a simple and quite fast method. We used exceptionally organic molecules under mild conditions and did not use expensive and toxic metals,” Pavel Postnikov, Associate Professor of TPU Research School of Chemistry and Applied Biomedical Science and the research supervisor says.
Reduced graphene oxide in a powder form is deposited on electrodes. As a result, the electrode becomes coated with hundreds of nanoscale layers of the substance. The layers tend to agglomerate, in other words, to sinter. To expand the surface area of a material, the interlayer spacing should be increased.
“For this purpose, we modified rGO with organic molecules, which resulted in the interlayer spacing increase. Insignificant differences in interlayer spacing allowed increasing energy capacity of the material by 1.7 times. That is, 1 g of the new material can store 1.7 times more energy in comparison with a pristine reduced graphene oxide,” Elizaveta Sviridova, Junior Research Fellow of TPU Research School of Chemistry and Applied Biomedical Sciences and one of the authors of the article explains.
The reaction proceeded through the formation of active arynes from iodonium salts. They kindle scientists` interest due to their property to form a single layer of new organic groups on material surfaces. The TPU researchers have been developing the chemistry of iodonium salts for many years.
“The modification reaction proceeds under mild conditions by simply mixing the solution of iodonium salt with reduced graphene oxide. If we compare it with other methods of reduced graphene oxide functionalization, we have achieved the highest indicators of material energy capacity increase,” Elizaveta Sviridova says.
###
The research work was conducted with the support of the Russian Science Foundation.
####
For more information, please click here
Contacts:
Alina Borovskaia
7-923-419-5528
@TPUnews_en
Copyright © Tomsk Polytechnic University
If you have a comment, please Contact us.
Issuers of news releases, not 7th Wave, Inc. or Nanotechnology Now, are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.
Related Links |
Related News Press |
News and information
New way to control electrical charge in 2D materials: Put a flake on it January 15th, 2021
Govt.-Legislation/Regulation/Funding/Policy
Controlling chemical catalysts with sculpted light January 15th, 2021
Researchers realize efficient generation of high-dimensional quantum teleportation January 14th, 2021
Chemists invent shape-shifting nanomaterial with biomedical potential It converts from sheets to tubes and back in a controllable fashion January 13th, 2021
Possible Futures
Scientists’ discovery is paving the way for novel ultrafast quantum computers January 15th, 2021
New way to control electrical charge in 2D materials: Put a flake on it January 15th, 2021
Discoveries
New way to control electrical charge in 2D materials: Put a flake on it January 15th, 2021
Announcements
New way to control electrical charge in 2D materials: Put a flake on it January 15th, 2021
Interviews/Book Reviews/Essays/Reports/Podcasts/Journals/White papers/Posters
New way to control electrical charge in 2D materials: Put a flake on it January 15th, 2021
Battery Technology/Capacitors/Generators/Piezoelectrics/Thermoelectrics/Energy storage
Record-setting thermoelectric figure of merit achieved for metal oxides December 29th, 2020
New imaging method views soil carbon at near-atomic scales December 25th, 2020
New class of cobalt-free cathodes could enhance energy density of next-gen lithium-ion batteries December 21st, 2020
Stretchable micro-supercapacitors to self-power wearable devices December 11th, 2020
Nano Technology
Researchers guide a single ion through a Bose Einstein condensate

Published
16 hours agoon
January 20, 2021
Source: https://www.nanowerk.com/nanotechnology-news2/newsid=57061.php
Nano Technology
Storing information with light: photo-ferroelectric materials

Published
16 hours agoon
January 20, 2021
Source: https://www.nanowerk.com/nanotechnology-news2/newsid=57060.php
Nano Technology
Do simulations represent the real world at the atomic scale?

Published
18 hours agoon
January 20, 2021
Source: https://www.nanowerk.com/nanotechnology-news2/newsid=57058.php

The Countdown is on: Bitcoin has 3 Days Before It Reaches Apex of Key Formation

Litecoin, VeChain, Ethereum Classic Price Analysis: 17 January

Is Ethereum Undervalued, or Polkadot Overvalued?

Here’s why Bitcoin or altcoins aren’t the best bets

Chainlink Futures OI follows asset’s price to hit ATH

The merger of FCA and Groupe PSA has been completed

5 Best Bitcoin Alternatives in 2021

Data Suggests Whales are Keen on Protecting One Key Bitcoin Support Level

Affinity Gaming’s SPAC Gaming & Hospitality Acquisition files for a $150 million IPO

Bitcoin Worth $140 Billion Lost Says UK Council

Bitcoin Cash Price Analysis: 17 January

Small, slick French camper van is the bivy of van life

eToro’s New Bitcoin Account Incentives Are So Good, They Had To Disable Buy Orders

Mitsubishi and Tokyo Tech Tap Blockchain for P2P Energy Trading Network

Cardano, Cosmos, BAT Price Analysis: 17 January

Mt. Gox Creditors Could Get Bankruptcy-tied Bitcoin

Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust adds over 5k BTC in 24 hours

New Highs Inbound: Ethereum is About to See an Explosive Rally Against BTC

Why Bitcoin denominated payments won’t be mainstream anytime soon

Rob Joyce to Take Over as NSA Cybersecurity Director
Trending
-
Amb Crypto5 days ago
Ethereum, Dogecoin, Maker Price Analysis: 15 January
-
Blockchain1 week ago
Bitcoin, Altcoins Dip. Are Crypto Entering Bear Territory?
-
Amb Crypto5 days ago
How are Chainlink’s whales propping up its price?
-
Gaming1 week ago
CD Projekt RED Could be Fined 10% of its Annual Income by Polish Government if Cyberpunk 2077 Patches Don’t Fix the Game
-
Amb Crypto5 days ago
NavCoin releases its new privacy protocol, one day after Binance adds NAV to its staking program
-
SPAC Insiders1 week ago
Churchill Capital Corporation IV (CCIV) Reportedly in Talks for Merger with Lucid Motors
-
NEWATLAS1 week ago
Lenovo AR glasses let you multi-screen virtually anywhere
-
Gaming1 week ago
Cyberpunk 2077 Support To Be Monitored by Polish Consumer Protection Agency
-
Blockchain1 week ago
2.5 Crore INR Scam: Pluto Exchange CEO Arrested in India
-
Blockchain6 days ago
Warp Finance Relaunches With ‘Additional Security’ from Chainlink
-
Blockchain6 days ago
Litecoin Regains Footing After Being Knocked Back by Resistance
-
Gaming1 week ago
Xbox Series S Specs Will be Adequate for Graphically Intensive Next-Gen Games, Super Meat Boy Forever Dev Believes