Rise of the Nanomachines
June 17, 2024
(The New Yorker) – At the time, Santos was at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Paris, studying genes that allow some bacteria to live longer than others. But after her grandfather’s death she decided to focus instead on new ways of killing pathogens. One problem with traditional antibiotics is that bacteria, which are always evolving, can develop resistance over time. To stay competitive in the arms race between bacteria and biotechnology, Santos reasoned, scientists might need entirely new weapons. She read in Nature that scientists at Rice, led by the chemist James Tour, had developed “molecular machines” that spun like microscopic drills and were roughly ten thousand times smaller than the width of a human hair—small enough to puncture and kill individual cells. Shortly thereafter, Santos moved to Houston to join Tour’s lab. (Read More)