Synthetic Nanoparticles for Vaccines and Immunotherapy

The immune system plays a critical role in our health. No other component of human physiology plays a decisive role in as diverse an array of maladies, from deadly diseases with which we are all familiar to equally terrible esoteric conditions: HIV, malaria, pneumococcal and influenza infections; cancer; atherosclerosis; autoimmune diseases such as lupus, diabetes, and multiple sclerosis. The importance of understanding the function of the immune system and learning how to modulate immunity to protect against or treat disease thus cannot be overstated. Fortunately, we are entering an exciting era where the science of immunology is defining pathways for the rational manipulation of the immune system at the cellular and molecular level, and this understanding is leading to dramatic advances in the clinic that are transforming the future of medicine.1,2 These initial advances are being made primarily through biologic drugs– recombinant proteins (especially antibodies) or patient-derived cell therapies– but exciting data from preclinical studies suggest that a marriage of approaches based in biotechnology with the materials science and chemistry of nanomaterials, especially nanoparticles, could enable more effective and safer immune engineering strategies. This review will examine these nanoparticle-based strategies to immune modulation in detail, and discuss the promise and outstanding challenges facing the field of immune engineering from a chemical biology/materials engineering perspectiveNational Institutes of Health (U.S.) (Grants AI111860, CA174795, CA172164, AI091693, and AI095109)United States. Department of Defense (W911NF-13-D-0001 and Awards W911NF-07-D-0004

Environmental, economic, and social impacts of biofuel production from sugarcane in Australia

Ashwath, N ORCiD: 0000-0002-4032-4507In this chapter, the environmental, social, and economic impacts of bioethanol produced from sugarcane are discussed in the context of Queensland where most of Australia’s cane is grown and processed. A brief background on sugarcane cultivation and processing precedes the discussion on the impacts. The benefits of bioethanol production from sugarcane include alleviation of carbon emissions, diminution of fuel imports, reduction in rural migration to cities because of employment generation, and synthesis of bio-based products. On the other hand, the negative impacts involve nutrient leaching into water bodies, land degradation, and the effects on native title. Recent introduction of corrective programs both by the federal (GBR Foundation Partnership) and the state (Queensland Biofutures Program) governments hopefully will find appropriate solutions to minimize the negative impacts