nanotechnology

Nanotechnology targets head/neck cancer

Source: www.drbicuspid.com Author: DrBicuspid Staff Preclinical studies have shown that the NanoSmart drug-delivery system from Aura Biosciences can enable earlier detection of head and neck and other cancers, and provide precisely targeted treatment of those cancers, according to the company. Aura Biosciences has raised an additional $4.5 million from private investors to advance this research and has entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement with the National Institutes of Health to further develop and eventually commercialize the technology. "Malignant tumors of epithelial tissues are the most common form of cancer and are responsible for the majority of cancer-related deaths in the U.S. Mortality is linked increasingly to early metastasis, which is often undetected at the time of primary diagnosis," stated Elisabet de los Pinos, PhD, founder and CEO of Aura Biosciences, in a press release. "The development of a real-time detection system that is sensitive and specific for epithelial tumors, and that can further enable a targeted treatment to distant metastases, could lead to major improvements in efficacy and survival rates." NanoSmart utilizes nanosphere particles (NSPs) that have a selective tropism for epithelial-derived tumor cells. With NanoSmart, fluorescing molecules are encapsulated into these NSPs, which then selectively target diseased tissue, penetrate the cancerous cells, and release a fluorescent signal that can be visualized in real-time with existing medical imaging equipment. The same NSP vehicle can also be loaded with a chemotherapeutic drug to deliver a lethal dose directly to the tumor cancer cells, ostensibly increasing the drug's efficacy while [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-09-19T19:25:28-07:00September, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Uptake and fate of surface modified silica nanoparticles in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma

Source: 7thspace.com Author: Emina Besic Gyenge et al. Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is currently the eighth leading cause of cancer death worldwide. The often severe side effects, functional impairments and unfavorable cosmetic outcome of conventional therapies for HNSCC have prompted the quest for novel treatment strategies, including the evaluation of nanotechnology to improve drug delivery and cancer imaging. Although silica nanoparticles hold great promise for biomedical applications, they have not yet been investigated in the context of HNSCC. In the present in-vitro study we thus analyzed the cytotoxicity, uptake and intracellular fate of 200-300 nm core-shell silica nanoparticles encapsulating fluorescent dye tris(bipyridine)ruthenium(II) dichloride with hydroxyl-, aminopropyl- or PEGylated surface modifications (Ru@SiO2-OH, Ru@SiO2-NH2, Ru@SiO2-PEG) in the human HNSCC cell line UMB-SCC 745. Results: We found that at concentrations of 0.125 mg/ml, none of the nanoparticles used had a statistically significant effect on proliferation rates of UMB-SCC 745. Confocal and transmission electron microscopy showed an intracellular appearance of Ru@SiO2-OH and Ru@SiO2-NH2 within 30 min. They were internalized both as single nanoparticles (presumably via clathin-coated pits) or in clusters and always localized to cytoplasmic membrane-bounded vesicles. Immunocytochemical co-localization studies indicated that only a fraction of these nanoparticles were transferred to early endosomes, while the majority accumulated in large organelles. Ru@SiO2-OH and Ru@SiO2-NH2 nanoparticles had never been observed to traffic to the lysosomal compartment and were rather propagated at cell division. Intracellular persistence of Ru@SiO2-OH and Ru@SiO2-NH2 was thus traceable over 5 cell passages, but did not result in apparent changes [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2011-08-11T12:56:09-07:00August, 2011|Oral Cancer News|

Nano-bio-chip checks for oral cancer

Source: www.nanotech-now.com Author: press release The gentle touch of a brush on the tongue or cheek can help detect oral cancer with success rates comparable to more invasive techniques like biopsies, according to preliminary studies by researchers at Rice University, the University of Texas Health Science Centers at Houston and San Antonio and the University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. A new test that uses Rice's diagnostic nano-bio-chip was found to be 97 percent "sensitive" and 93 percent specific in detecting which patients had malignant or premalignant lesions, results that compared well with traditional tests. The results of this study, which was led by John McDevitt, were published in the journal Cancer Prevention Research. Oral cancer afflicts more than 300,000 people a year, including 35,000 in the United States alone. The five-year survival rate is 60 percent, but if oral cancer is detected early, that rate rises to 90 percent. "One of the key discoveries in this paper is to show that the miniaturized, noninvasive approach produces about the same result as the pathologists do," said Dr. McDevitt, whose group developed the novel nano-bio-chip technology. Dr. McDevitt and his team are working to create an inexpensive chip that can differentiate premalignant lesions from the 95 percent of lesions that will not become cancerous. The minimally invasive technique would deliver results in 15 minutes instead of several days, as lab-based diagnostics do now. Instead of an invasive, painful biopsy, the new procedure requires just a light brush of the lesion [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2010-05-23T16:01:08-07:00May, 2010|Oral Cancer News|

Rice wins NIH funding for oral-cancer test

Source: www.nanotech-now.com Author: staff The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded researchers in Rice University's new BioScience Research Collaborative (BRC) a $2 million Grand Opportunity (GO) grant to develop a fast, inexpensive test for oral cancer that a dentist could perform simply by using a brush to collect a small sample of cells from a patient's mouth. "We want to provide an accurate diagnosis for oral cancer in less than 30 minutes using a minimally invasive test that requires no scalpels or off-site lab tests," said principal investigator John McDevitt, Rice's Brown-Wiess Professor in Bioengineering and Chemistry. "The payoff for this could be tremendous because oral cancers today are typically diagnosed much too late in their development." NIH established the GO grant program to support projects that address large, specific research endeavors that are likely to deliver near-term growth and investment in biomedical research and development, public health and health care delivery. GO grant funding was provided by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. If oral cancer is detected early, the prognosis for patients is excellent, with a five-year survival rate of more than 90 percent. Unfortunately, the actual five-year survival rate for oral squamous cell carcinoma is only about 50 percent, among the lowest rates for all major cancers. Oral squamous cell carcinoma affects about 300,000 people per year worldwide, and most cases are diagnosed in their late stages. The new test is possible because of a novel microchip invented in McDevitt's lab. This "lab-on-a-chip" uses the latest [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2009-11-05T13:38:46-07:00November, 2009|Oral Cancer News|

Bold cancer therapy begins crucial trials

Source: Houston Chronicle (Chron.com) Author: Eric Berger The buzz surrounding gold nanoshells, a radical new approach to treating cancer, began shortly after their creation in Houston a decade ago. The work by Rice University scientists prompted U.S. Rep. John Culberson, a nanotechnology enthusiast whose district includes Rice, to declare that cancer was "cured." And when the National Institute of Cancer announced a massive influx of funding into nanotechnology -- the control of matter on the atomic and molecular scale -- nanoshells became its poster child. But cancer hasn't been cured, and drugs touted as magic bullets litter the history of cancer research. So what of nanoshells? Are they all sizzle, no substance? It's a question that's not yet answerable but may be soon. Without fanfare, the Houston company formed to develop nanoshells, Nanospectra Biosciences, has just begun its first human clinical trial, treating a patient with head and neck cancer. The company hopes to heat nanoshells in the tumor with near-infrared light, burning the cancerous growth away. For the company and for Houston, the trial marks a big step. Nanoshells -- tiny spheres of glass coated with gold -- are the first engineered nanomaterial to enter into human trials. And discoveries made in Houston labs are typically developed by biotechnology firms elsewhere, such as Boston or San Diego. "I'm thrilled," said Naomi Halas, the Rice chemist who created nanoshells in 1997 and realized a few years later their potential to treat cancer. "There's no question it's been a long road, [...]

Oral Cancer Foundation News Team - A2008-08-04T17:26:57-07:00August, 2008|Oral Cancer News|