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Thursday, 25th February 2010 (2704 views)

New research suggests gold nanoparticles could be used to detect molecular alterations that take place during the very early stages of cancer, even if those changes only occur in a small percentage of cells.

Writing in the Journal of Nanobiotechnology, scientists Joao Conde, Jesus de la Fuente and Pedro Baptista said they have successfully used microscopic gold particles modified for the detection of specific nucleic acid targets to recognise the BCR-ABL fusion transcript mRNA, which is responsible for the development of chronic myeloid leukaemia (CML).

The "inexpensive" detection method is easy to conduct and crucially, takes just 30 minutes to complete after the extraction of RNA molecules. This minimises the risk of samples deteriorating.

With further development, the technique could speed up the early detection of CML and could also be modified to target genes linked to the development of other forms of cancer.

Earlier this week, Nano Patents and Innovations reported that scientists at Hokkaido University's Graduate School of Engineering recently exhibited a new low-cost technique for producing gold nanoparticles at a nanotechnology show in Tokyo.

The researchers employed microwave-induced plasma in liquid to create the particles in a clean, fast and highly efficiency manner, the site added.

 

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