Researchers have built a nanotube with unparalleled filtering abilities. The medical meta - material is selective about what ions pass through it, opening the door for nano-scale water purification and intracellular disease treatment.

Scientists at the University of Buffalo layered doughnut shaped molecules atop one another, building up the microscopic slivers to create a nanotube with a pore diameter of one nanometer(nm). To give some context the average human hair is a staggering 60000 nm wide. This intense level of filtering allows the nanotubes to let potassium and water ions to pass but rebuffs other ions such as lithium and sodium.The ongoing research moves onto building different tubes to filter different ions. The biological applications are significant, the scientists contend tumours could be killed by these selective nanopores. This biotechnological advancement takes cues from mother natures engineering – ionic selective filtering is widespread in the wild (the protein membrane of human cells is a good example) but had to date eluded the capabilities of synthetic materials. Nanomedicine just added a powerful tool to its repertoire