Nanoparticles inhibit glioblastoma
Researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle have discovered that nanoparticles which are designed for imaging glioblastoma, a type of brain cancer, can inhibit tumor cell invasion, one of the key events that leads to the metastatic spread of cancer.
Scientists from Seattle have found that chlorotoxin, a tiny peptide toxin produced by the death stalker scorpion, is highly effective as a tumor-targeting agent when chemically linked to a variety of nanoparticles. Researchers have “connected” chlorotoxin to magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles, which can act as tumor imaging agents in conjunction with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). When added to glioblastoma cells growing in culture, the chlorotoxin-targeted nanoparticles were rapidly taken up by the tumor cells.
The details are published in the journal Small.
Source: dx.doi.org/doi:10.1002/smll.200800646
