As discussed in my last Editorial, 2015 was a big year for the Materials Today family, and 2016 looks to be no different. But it's with mixed feelings that we start the year, with two of Elsevier's materials team moving on to new opportunities; with group leader, Publishing Director Louise Curtis moving on to a new role, and Dr Baptiste Gault, Publisher and Associate Editor for Materials Today returning to a position in research. I’ve no doubt that many of you will have met Louise and Baptiste over the years, or indeed attended one of the many webinars Baptiste has moderated on MaterialsToday.com; and so I hope you will join me in wishing them all the best for the future.
But looking now to the present, and the current issue of the Materials Today journal, we begin with a Comment from Chengyun Ning et al, on Fourth-generation biomedical materials, and how a new generation of biomaterials is required to both manipulate and monitor cellular bioelectrical signals.
In our first review, Katsuhiko Ariga and colleagues discuss Catalytic nanoarchitectonics for environmentally-compatible energy generation, covering one of the most versatile energy-conversion technologies, heterogeneous catalysts; including the integrity of structural tailoring in heterogeneous catalysts at different scales, the fundamental background of energy-conversion catalysis, and future perspectives. Next, Luis M. Liz-Marzán et al examine Inorganic nanoparticles for biomedicine: where materials scientists meet medical research, looking at the biosensing capabilities of plasmonic nanoparticles, in connection with SERS imaging, and exploring novel therapies based on local drug delivery and photothermal therapy. Continuing with the biomedical applications of nanomaterials, João Conde and colleagues consider RNAi nanomaterials targeting immune cells as an anti-tumor therapy: the missing link in cancer treatment?Reviewing potential RNAi targets, means to activate and control the immune response, as well as ways to design delivery nanovehicles for successful RNAi immunotherapy. And in our final review Richard Hoogenboom et al. discuss Supramolecular control over thermoresponsive polymers, looking at the latest advances on the combination of this new field of research with polymer chemistry, and covering how such polymer systems are able to store thermal information, respond to multiple stimuli in a reversible manner, or adapt their morphology on demand.
As always, opening and closing the issue is our cover feature; and the first of the winners for our annual cover competition, sponsored by ZEISS. You can find all the winning images at www.materialstoday.com/cover-competition-2015, but take a look at each issue's Uncovered article to explore the science behind the image. In this issue'sUncovered feature Yadav and Patel discuss the Bimodal distribution of grains, with the cover showing the microstructure of fractured the surface of CCTO ceramics. Read on to find out more…
And so as we enter 2016, we hope you enjoy this issue, and volume, of Materials Today.