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Monday, 16th November 2009 (3048 views)

Gold nanoparticles are to be used as an "innovative cancer treatment", according to the Israel National News.

The Technion Institute of Technology in Haifa has initiated the non-invasive treatment which is intended to destroy cancerous cells without damaging any of the healthy cells that surround them.

Dr Dvir Yelin, a researcher at the centre, explains that the tumour is illuminated via an endoscopic laser-based miniature optical fibre. The laser consists of very short pulses at millions of billionths of a second which can then break down the cell without the use of heat.

"The laser has a wavelength that precisely fits the resonant frequency of nanoparticles, which makes it possible to highly increase the efficiency of the laser," says Dr Yelin.

Intense laser illumination will dismantle the material within the cancer cell through ionisation. The cancerous cell shall then die without damaging any of the healthy cells surrounding the tumour.

The research has won backing from the European Union, who has donated a grant of €2 million (£1.78 million) towards the cause, as well as a further grant of over $1 million (£596,743) from the Israel Science Foundation.

Previous studies have found that gold nanoparticles have a 600 per cent greater affinity for cancerous cells than normal, healthy cells.

 

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