Friday, 17th March 2006 (4420 views)

Scientists have discovered a new and improved way of detecting and destroying cancer cells by using rod-shaped gold nanoparticles.

The new method, developed by researchers at Georgia Institute for Technology and the University of California-San Francisco, can detect and kill tumours hidden deep beneath the skin, without hurting healthy cells.

While previous research in this area used gold nanospheres, the breakthrough was made by switching to cylindrical nanorod designs.

Changing the shape of the nanoparticle permitted safer, deeper penetrating non-invasive treatment for diseases such as breast cancer, the researchers concluded.

Georgia Tech professor Mostafa El-Sayed, explained: "With the nanospheres we're using visible lasers, but most of the solid cancer is under the tissues and visible light doesn't go but a few millimetres deep.

"But by using the nanorods we can tune them to react to the infrared lasers, which can penetrate the tumour without being absorbed by the tissues."

The research appears in the current issue of the Journal of the American Chemical Society.

Gold has been at the centre of several recent medical breakthroughs.

Recent research, for instance, suggested gold nanoparticle techniques could slow or even halt Alzheimer's disease.

 

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