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Monday, 13th February 2006 (6029 views)

A study has shown how gold particles can be used in a 'nanoshuttle' to potentially seek out and treat disease in the body, according to nanotechwire.

The study, carried out by researchers at the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Centre, was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science USA.

The gold particles in the nanoshuttle could possible be programmed to destroy tissue, and the system could also be used as a kind of flexible scaffold to carry drugs or genes.

This is possible because gold is not rejected by the body.

The co-leader of the study, Renata Pasqualini, says that "gold is the perfect metal to perform these different functions."

"Instead of taking the usual approach by using a synthetic molecule or polymer, we have found a way to mix a 'genetically programmable' nanoparticle with a biologically compatible metal that together target specific locations in the body," she explained.

Gold nanoparticles have a number of uses in the world of medicine. Researchers in the UK recently developed a method of using them to assess kinase inhibition.

 

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