RNA-Loaded Nanoparticles Fight Cancer

DirkDaring writes "It's been promised for years: that nanoparticles offer a treatment to many forms of cancer. Today, an important first step has been announced. In a new human trial, nanoparticles carrying RNA have successfully reached cancer cells and silenced the target gene. 'The researchers developed a nanoparticle carrying a molecular marker that binds to the surface of cancer cells, triggering the cells to absorb it. The siRNA carried within the particle was designed to silence a gene called ribonucleotide reductase M2 (RRM2), which regulates DNA synthesis and repair and is known to be an anticancer target. Because it was the first trial using targeted RNAi delivery for cancer, says Mark Davis, a professor of chemical engineering at Caltech and the study's lead author, "we wanted to choose a gene that was suspected to be hugely upregulated in a broad spectrum of cancers" in order to increase the likelihood of being able to observe the novel therapy's effect. The researchers analyzed biopsy samples from three melanoma patients in the trial who had received different doses of the therapy. They tracked the particles in the different samples, finding that the amounts they could see in the tumor cells correlated with the doses the patients received.'"

I Am Legend

[lymond01]

TV Personality: And how many people have you treated so far?
Dr. Alice Krippin: Well, we've had ten thousand and nine clinical trials in humans so far.
TV Personality: And how many are cancer-free?
Dr. Alice Krippin: Ten thousand and nine.
TV Personality: So you have actually cured cancer.
Dr. Alice Krippin: Yes, yes... yes, we have.

Cue destruction of humanity by albino gymnasts.

So...

[vistapwns]

"Smoke 'em if you got 'em?"

Re:What if cancer cells are a symptom?

[thms]

Certainly it might be *possible* [...]

Yes, as a true scientist that is the correct answer, and here lies the problem: This non-denial gives this idea all the credibility it needs to run off as pseudo science. And once again the following holds:

The trouble with the world is that the stupid are cocksure and the intelligent are full of doubt. --Bertrand Russell

Gold nanorods

[Adaeniel]

Gold nanorods have also shown promise for the destruction of cancer cells. The really neat thing about them is that their absorption is tunable based on their size. In turn, they can be tuned to absorb in the near-infrared spectrum. The nanorods are then irradiated with near-infrared radiation, producing heat. This burns away cancer cells locally. There is still debate related to cell death caused by uptake of gold nanorods/nanoparticles.

In summary, we will hopefully be able to pew-pew-pew cancer to death with little damage to other cells. Yes, this whole post is constructed in order to use pew-pew-pew in a science related message.