Protein misfolding and aggregation are the fundamental causes of many degenerative conditions, including Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease (AD and PD) as well as type II diabetes. Misfolded proteins are usually biologically inactive; however, the dynamic equilibrium between monomeric and oligomeric aggregates may lead to cytotoxic states that induce the degenerative condition. In AD, amyloid-β (Aβ) and tau proteins misfold and form oligomers and fibrils that accumulate in the brain in pathogenic pathways leading to synaptic loss and selective neuronal cell death.

A material that behaves like our eyes and remembers like our brain: this is the discovery of a successful team of researchers from the Italian Institute of Technology, Federico II University of Naples and RWTH University of Aache. The team worked on the synthesis of a new organic material that is conductive and sensitive to light which, when appropriately stimulated, imitates the behaviour of the retina but also memory processes in the brain.

Molecular systems specifically designed to convert dynamic functions at the molecular scale into a response visible to the naked eye in multifunctional smart materials: is it still science fiction?

The development of novel materials is the driving force of the incoming energy transition. Catalysis plays a fundamental role, being involved in more than 90% of the industrial chemical processes. Most catalysts are based on noble and critical materials, raising severe problems of availability and overall sustainability. In the last decade research attempted to develop a new family of catalysts, named Single Atom Catalysts. These systems are made by transition metal atoms atomically dispersed to some solid matrices.