Outline in 2021

Age-related macular degeneration is the leading cause of blindness in older adults, but techniques are being developed to offset the worst of the damage.

A raft of approaches for preventing loss of vision owing to this disease are showing their mettle in clinical trials.

People who develop the dry form of age-related macular degeneration (AMD) currently have no effective options for preserving their vision. But several promising therapeutic avenues are being explored that might just change that.

Some babies are born with hearts that have missing or malformed parts. A series of delicate operations can fix the damage and extend the lives of these children.

Some babies are born with a rare disorder in which only one of the lower chambers of their heart works properly. These single-ventricle defects (SVDs) can be managed through a complex series of operations.

Babies born with one small or malformed ventricle can be treated with a series of surgeries, but new techniques could allow doctors to begin treatment from within the womb.

Defects in diamonds allow them to be used for a diverse array of applications.

Synthetic versions of the super-hard gem stone are driving the development of a class of device with applications in biomedicine and beyond.

Diamonds, one of the hardest materials on Earth, are so strong that they can protect fragile quantum states that would otherwise survive only in a vacuum or at ultra-cold temperatures. Engineers are mastering the art of growing diamonds with special properties and detecting their quantum spins — opening up a range of sensing applications in the life sciences and elsewhere.