Nanotechnology, the future of chemo

Home

Nanotechnology, the future of chemo

Written by Administrator

Wednesday, 28 April 2010 18:03

Posted by Laura Pentassuglia , researcher cardioncologia

at Vanderbilt Medical Center in Nashville (U.S.).

Side effects of chemotherapy greatly limited its applications. Recent years have developed various strategies to limit and / or preventing them. Recently I came across a discipline as interesting as art. Nanotechnology. For nanotechnology, refers to structures in the order of a millionth of a millimeter. This discipline is moving powerfully in the medical and scientific developments, particularly for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

In diagnosis are in the studio "Quantum Dots", which are fluorescent spheres of different colors. These spheres have outside proteins or antibodies that allow them to recognize specific tumor markers: why are the studio for viewing of tumors and metastases. In addition this technology could also be used to identify markers without the need for biopsies.

Fig 1. Nanoparticles can pass through the walls of tumor blood vessels and can reach cancer cells preferentially.

In terms of chemotherapy, nanotechnology is exploiting the permeability of tumor blood vessels that allow particles in the order of 400nm (0.0004 mm) to penetrate the tumor mass. Using different organic substances can create containers of organic, non-toxic for cells, capable of carrying preferentially to tumors and not normal tissue, chemotherapeutic agents.

Fig 2. The liposome is a hollow sphere made of lipids within which you can load doxorubicin.

An example of this type is the lipodoxorubicina, approved by the Food and Drug Administration ( FDA - USA) for the treatment of several cancers. Quest'agente consists of a lipid sphere inside which is the doxorubicin . Several clinical studies have shown that this new formulation is effective in the treatment of cancer and at the same time significantly reduces the presence of side effects.

The lipodoxorubicina is the founder of a large number of nano-particles are currently in advanced stages of preclinical research. According to the excellent results obtained so far are expected to soon be introduced at the clinical level.

Main Menu

Categories