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Particles of iron oxide enhance tumor visibility through MRI

Tiny particles of iron oxide could become tools for simultaneous tumor imaging and treatment, because of their magnetic properties and toxic effects against brain cancer cells. In mice, researchers from Emory University School of Medicine have demonstrated how these particles can deliver antibodies to implanted brain tumors, while enhancing tumor visibility via magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

3 Aug 2010

Nanotechnology approaches to solve major problems on global scale: Report

Nanotechnology refers to a broad range of tools, techniques and applications that simply involve particles on the approximate size scale of a few to hundreds of nanometers in diameter. Particles of this size have some unique physicochemical and surface properties that lend themselves to novel uses. Indeed, advocates of nanotechnology suggest that this area of research could contribute to solutions for some of the major problems we face on the global scale such as ensuring a supply of safe drinking water for a growing population, as well as addressing issues in medicine, energy, and agriculture.

29 Jul 2010

Scientists unveil nanoparticle for photoacoustic imaging

Spotting a single cancerous cell that has broken free from a tumor and is traveling through the bloodstream to colonize a new organ might seem like finding a needle in a haystack. But a new imaging technique from the University of Washington is a first step toward making this possible.UW researchers have developed a multifunctional nanoparticle that eliminates the background noise, enabling a more precise form of medical imaging - essentially erasing the haystack, so the needle shines through. A successful demonstration with photoacoustic imaging was reported today (July 27) in the journal Nature Communications.

28 Jul 2010

SurModics, EGEN continue collaboration on long-term controlled release of siRNA complexes

SurModics, Inc., a leading provider of drug delivery and surface modification technologies to the healthcare industry and EGEN, Inc., a privately held biopharmaceutical company focused on developing nucleic acid (DNA and RNAi) therapeutics for the treatment of human diseases, are pleased to announce they have executed a continuation of their feasibility collaboration focused on long-term controlled release of siRNA complexes.

28 Jul 2010

Scientists develop laser activated carbon nanoparticles for drug, gene delivery

Using chemical "nanoblasts" that punch tiny holes in the protective membranes of cells, researchers have demonstrated a new technique for getting therapeutic small molecules, proteins and DNA directly into living cells.Carbon nanoparticles activated by bursts of laser light trigger the tiny blasts, which open holes in cell membranes just long enough to admit therapeutic agents contained in the surrounding fluid. By adjusting laser exposure, the researchers administered a small-molecule marker compound to 90 percent of targeted cells - while keeping more than 90 percent of the cells alive.

28 Jul 2010

Attaching transferrin to nanoparticle surface can kill cancer cells

A normally benign protein found in the human body appears to be able - when paired with nanoparticles - to zero in on and kill certain cancer cells, without having to also load those particles with chemotherapy drugs.The finding could lead to a new strategy for targeted cancer therapies, according to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill scientists who made the discovery.

28 Jul 2010

Scientists develop nanoprobe to detect blood vessel growth in tumors

Formation of new blood vessels, also known as angiogenesis, is crucial for sustained tumor growth and cancer metastasis. Recently, clinically available therapies to suppress the growth of these vessels have been available to improve patient survival in some cancer types. Accurate detection and quantification of blood vessel growth using nonsurgical methods would greatly complement current therapies and allow physicians to quickly assess treatment regimens and adjust them as necessary. In the work published in the August issue of Experimental Biology and Medicine, Kessinger and coworkers have incorporated nanotechnology, material science, and the clinical imaging modality MRI, to create a nanosized probe capable of noninvasively visualizing and quantifying the blood vessel growth in tumors in a preclinical model.

26 Jul 2010

Researchers share nanotechnology knowledge

InForm, a AU$2.7 million EU-funded project involving world-leading research institutionsincluding the University of Sydney,hosted its first conference, 'NanoFormulation2010', in June at Stockholm University.

22 Jul 2010

Researchers develop laser-induced thermal therapy to treat cancer

A group of researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center is developing a way to treat cancer by using lasers to light up tiny nanoparticles and destroy tumors with the ensuing heat. Today at the 52nd Annual Meeting of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine in Philadelphia, they will describe the latest development for this technology: iron-containing Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes threads of hollow carbon that are 10 thousand times thinner than a human hair.

22 Jul 2010

Scientists discover world's first mass producible, low-cost organoclays for plastics

Scientists are reporting an in-depth validation of the discovery of the world's first mass producible, low-cost, organoclays for plastics. The powdered material, made from natural clay, would be a safer, more environmentally friendly replacement for the compound widely used to make plastics nanocomposites. A report on the research appears in ACS' Macromolecules, a bi-weekly journal.

22 Jul 2010

Ivy nanoparticles protect skin from UV radiation better than metal-based sunblocks: Study

When Mingjun Zhang was watching his son play in the yard, he was hit with a burning question: "What makes the ivy in his backyard cling to the fence so tightly?" That simple question has led to a pioneering discovery that the tiny particles secreted from ivy rootlets can be used in many breakthrough applications in items such as military technologies, medical adhesives and drug delivery, and, most recently, sun-block.

20 Jul 2010

An overview of AAPM annual meeting

AAPM is the premier organization in medical physics, a broadly-based scientific and professional discipline encompassing physics principles and applications in medicine and biology. Its membership includes medical physicists who specialize in research that develops cutting-edge technologies and board-certified clinical medical physicists who apply these technologies in community hospitals, clinics, and academic medical centers.

16 Jul 2010

Arsenic nanoparticle to combat aggressive type of breast cancer prevalent in young women

You can teach an old drug new chemotherapy tricks. Northwestern University researchers took a drug therapy proven for blood cancers but ineffective against solid tumors, packaged it with nanotechnology and got it to combat an aggressive type of breast cancer prevalent in young women, particularly young African-American women.

16 Jul 2010

IAS announces recipients of CNIHR grants

The International AIDS Society today announced the recipients of its first joint research grant programme, Creative and Novel Ideas in HIV Research. CNIHR grants, funded in partnership with the U.S. National Institutes of Health and the NIH-supported Centers for AIDS Research are designed to promote innovative research and new ideas from early stage investigators whose primary focus has previously been in fields of scientific inquiry other than HIV/ AIDS.

14 Jul 2010

Highlights of AAPM 52nd meeting

The 52nd meeting of the American Association of Physicists in Medicine (AAPM) convenes from July 18 - 22, 2010 in Philadelphia, PA.

14 Jul 2010

Researchers demonstrate that MSNs can effectively suppress tumors in mice

The application of nanotechnology in the field of drug delivery has attracted much attention in recent years. In cancer research, nanotechnology holds great promise for the development of targeted, localized delivery of anticancer drugs, in which only cancer cells are affected.

12 Jul 2010

URI engineers develop new controlled drug delivery system using nanoparticles embedded in liposome

A new system for the controlled delivery of pharmaceutical drugs has been developed by a team of University of Rhode Island chemical engineers using nanoparticles embedded in a liposome that can be triggered by non-invasive electromagnetic fields.

9 Jul 2010

Research could lead to remote stimulation of cells to treat cancer or diabetes

Clusters of heated, magnetic nanoparticles targeted to cell membranes can remotely control ion channels, neurons and even animal behavior, according to a paper published by University at Buffalo physicists in Nature Nanotechnology.

7 Jul 2010

Multicolor quantum dots can distinguish Reed-Sternberg cells, article shows

The tunable fluorescent nanoparticles known as quantum dots make ideal tools for distinguishing and identifying rare cancer cells in tissue biopsies, Emory and Georgia Tech scientists have demonstrated.

7 Jul 2010

Data published in Cancer Research demonstrates proof of concept for Mirna's tumor suppressor miRNAs

Mirna Therapeutics announced today publication of new results in the journal Cancer Research demonstrating proof of concept that the systemic delivery of tumor suppressor microRNAs (miRNA) inhibits tumor growth by restoring the proper regulatory pathways required for cell cycle arrest and apoptosis.

30 Jun 2010