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jedemdasseine
20th April 2010, 08:59 PM
Gold nanoparticles "toxic to tumours"

Monday, 19th April 2010

Gold nanoparticles treated with the radioactive isotope gold-198 have been successfully used by scientists in the US to target and destroy cancerous cells in mice while leaving healthy tissue unharmed.

Dr Kattesh Katti and research assistant professor Raghuraman Kannan of the University of Missouri at Columbia led the team that developed the particles, Nanowerk reports.

Once the gold material was radioactive, it was treated with gum Arabic glycoprotein to make it biocompatible and able to escape the bloodstream in order to congregate in tumours.

Single doses of the nanoparticles were injected into mice with implanted human prostate cancer.

After three weeks, the scientists recorded an 82 per cent reduction in tumour volume compared to subjects that received normal particles coated with gum Arabic glycoprotein.

Furthermore, the research showed no sign of radiation damage to various nearby blood cells, indicating that the specially-engineered gold nanoparticles are "only toxic to tumours".

http://www.gold.org/news/2010/04/19/story/14546/gold_nanoparticles_toxic_to_tumours/