Study: Nanotechnology Used 2,000 Years Ago
Posted on: Wednesday, 27 September 2006, 15:01 CDT
French researchers have found a hair dye developed 2,000 years ago relied on nanotechnology to change graying hair into a youthful black color.
Philippe Walter and colleagues at the French Museums Restoration Research Center in Paris studied a hair-dyeing recipe first described in Greco-Roman times. The recipe, Walter said, is also the basis of modern hair dyes that gradually darken gray or white hair.
The researchers found the ancient dye worked by causing formation of nanocrystals of lead sulfide. That chemical compound forms inside hair shafts and colors hair black without damaging it.
The lead sulfide crystals look much like the lead sulfide quantum dots synthesized recently using techniques from materials science, the scientists said.
In contrast to modern nanotechnology, the dyeing process is characterized by basic chemistry methods and has been developed more than 2,000 years ago with low-cost natural products, the scientists report.
The research appears in the current issue of the journal Nano Letters.
Source: United Press International
Related Articles
- Furyk, O'Hair co-lead PGA Deutsche Bank
- Acanya(TM) Gel, a New Treatment for Moderate to Severe Acne, Launched by Coria Laboratories
- Nanoparticle 'Smart Bomb' Targets Drug Delivery to Cancer Cells
- Skin Care Tips From the Top:
- There is a Cure for a New Disease Called Fictionosis
- A New Product Star Born Every 3 Minutes in 2005
- Dozen to Interview for Chance at New Face
- Cleveland Doc Wants to Try Face Transplant
- Doctor Pushes for First Face Transplant
 |
 |
User Comments (0)
RSS Feeds