Research on a new method for screening cells, which it is hoped, will speed up the detection of cancer, has become the 10 millionth record to be published on Inspec - the IET database of articles from more than 4,000 scientific and technical books and journals.

The latest record is a journal article from Institute of Physics Nanotechnology journal and is entitled ‘High throughput cell nanomechanics with mechanical imaging interferometry'.  The research, carried out the University of California in Los Angeles, details how tiny magnetic beads will speed up cancer screening and will change the future of nanoscale science and technology.

A nanometer-high protein spot on a silicon disc measured using interferometry techniques.
Image credit: Purdue University

Jim Gimzewski, Distinguished Professor of Chemistry at UCLA, leading nanoscientist , and one of the authors, said, “Our goal is to make these methods available within standard optical microscopes so that they can be used by pathologists, microbiologists and medical staff who use this technique on a daily basis for medical diagnosis.”

Images of a cervical-cancer cell were taken using interferometry techniques. Two 3-D images of the cell are shown at left; 2-D slices are seen at right. The green structures represent the nucleus, which surrounds the nucleolus (not visible in these images). The red areas are unidentified cell organelles. (Image credit: Michael Feld Laboratory, MIT.)

Simon Thomson, IET General Manager for Inspec, said, “Over the last four decades, the Inspec scientific editorial team has consistently added an invaluable layer of indexing and classification to the leading physics and engineering literature from around the world.  We are extremely proud to reach this historic landmark and the article appearing in Nanotechnology is a wonderful reflection of scope and quality of the original research abstracted in the Inspec database.”

To mark this landmark moment, Jim Gimzewski will speak at the Age of Nanotechnology event, which takes place on 8 July at the IET's global headquarters in Savoy Place, London .  The event is being organised by the Micro and Nano Systems Network, a joint venture between the IET and the Institute of Nanotechnology, with the aim of sharing knowledge and promoting the understanding and application of nanotechnology. 

Professor Gimzewski will talk about the strongest material ever made, the reality of a space elevator, how the electronics industry kick-started the nanomedicine revolution and the potential for programming single molecules. He will also share with his audience some of his passion for the artistic interpretation of the nano world!

View a film of the 10m record, which includes an interview with Jim Gimzewski:

10 millionth Inspec Record Interviews by James Hayes covering the Inspec production syste with one of the authors of the paper, the publisher, an Inspec user and the IET’s own Nano Letters journal. >> go to webcast

For more information about the event, visit http://www.nano.org.uk/events/ionevents.htm#IET

Source: IET /...