Surfactants, micelles, and vesicles constitute a class of self-assembled soft-matter physical systems arising from amphiphilic molecules in solution. Above the critical micelle concentration, surfactants spontaneously form micelles, typically spherical or anisotropic aggregates with hydrophobic cores and hydrophilic coronas, governed by minimization of interfacial free energy and packing constraints. At higher concentrations or appropriate conditions (e.g., temperature, ionic strength, tail architecture), these assemblies can transition into bilayer-based vesicles, closed shell structures encapsulating aqueous volumes and exhibiting bending elasticity, membrane tension, and permeability properties. Collectively, these systems serve as model platforms for studying interfacial thermodynamics, mesoscale organization, and transport phenomena in complex fluids.
NASA research has shown that cell-like compartments called vesicles could form naturally in the lakes of Saturn's moon Titan.
Astrobiology
Jul 14, 2025
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270
Bacteria are ubiquitous microscopic organisms capable of rapid growth. While beneficial strains like lactic acid bacteria (LAB) promote gut health and food preservation, pathogenic bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus ...
Bio & Medicine
Jul 2, 2025
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23
Influenza hemagglutinin subunit vaccines are more effective and offer better cross protection against various influenza virus challenges when combined with a mucosal adjuvant that enhances the body's immune response, according ...
Bio & Medicine
Jul 2, 2025
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25
A research group has developed a technology for mass-producing uniform artificial cells (lipid bilayer vesicles) with artificial model nuclei using microfluidic devices with high reproducibility. They also demonstrated that ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jun 19, 2025
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25
A new drug delivery system developed by researchers at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa John A. Burns School of Medicine (JABSOM) and Sungkyunkwan University in South Korea may significantly reduce serious lung damage. ...
Bio & Medicine
May 30, 2025
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75
Lipid membranes, which form the outer layer of cells, can be engineered to influence cellular functions. For example, adjusting the permeability of the membrane can improve drug delivery. Adding signaling molecules to the ...
Bio & Medicine
May 27, 2025
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32
Cells have a mailing system of sorts. They can release tiny molecular balls, called extracellular vesicles (EVs), that contain biological matter or messages and attach to other cells to share whatever they contain.
Bio & Medicine
May 5, 2025
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46
During the first 72 hours in particular, extracellular vesicles—nanoparticles enclosed in cell membranes—play a significant role in the embryonic development of zebrafish.
Bio & Medicine
Mar 3, 2025
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98
Harvard University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong researchers have developed a technique that increases the solubility of drug molecules by up to three orders of magnitude. This could be a breakthrough in drug formulation ...
An international team of scientists have discovered that soap could be important to helping our understanding of complex systems in the human body, such as lungs, and improving therapies for conditions such as respiratory ...
Soft Matter
Jan 24, 2025
0
80
