Homepage / AuNP Research Blog / Gold Nanoparticle Cancer Research News #7

Gold Nanoparticle Cancer Research News 
#7

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Originally Posted on 05/04/2018 @ 11:31 am EDT

Re-posted on 5/07/2018 @ 4:00 pm EDT

Last Edited on 05/03/2025

by Steven Warrenfeltz

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Hello,

If treating cancer with gold nanoparticles sounds too good to be true; read on, and you’ll discover that it’s not. 

This Guide Advocates for "Better Ways to Treat Cancer," and we believe Gold Nanoparticle Cancer Research is one of the best.

In this report, you'll find summaries on all of the latest Gold Nanoparticle Cancer Research.

Below is a glimpse into what you'll find in this issue:

• How researchers are building smart drugs with gold nanoparticles

• Gold Nanoparticles Give Oncologists a Better Way to Track Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs)

• Remote-Controlled Gold NanoRods Energize T-Cells for Precision Immunotherapy

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Building Smart Drugs with
Gold Nanoparticles

Scientists from the University of Lincoln in the United Kingdom have developed a new way to make drugs smarter by specifically using gold nanoparticles.

These drugs can be 'tailor-made' to target different types of cancer cells by using specific proteins (a.k.a - anti-bodies) that are attracted to cancer.

The new method enables researchers to coat the gold nanoparticles with layers of cancer-fighting drugs and proteins.

The method of layering drugs and proteins to gold nanoparticles maintains the integrity of the cancer-fighting drug to keep it from degrading in the bloodstream, which is what happens under normal conditions.

In addition, due to the small size of the gold nanoparticles and their inert capabilities, they've shown that they can easily overcome biological barriers, such as cell membranes, which often prevent cancer drugs from reaching their intended targets.

Dr. Enrico Ferrari, who led the study and is a nanobiotechnologist from the University of Lincoln's School of Life Sciences, stated the following about using Gold Nanoparticles in this research.

See the full article here: Nanomedicine: Drugs can be made 'smarter' - Science Daily

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Researchers Find a Better Way to
Track Circulating Tumor Cells (CTCs)

The cancer cells used in this study were melanoma skin cancer cells, which are known for their harmful circulating tumor cells (CTCs) abilities.  

Cancer metastasizes by releasing circulating tumor cells (CTCs) into the bloodstream, which is one of the deadliest components of cancer.

Currently, the FDA has approved only one type of circulating tumor cell (CTC) detection technology known as the Cell Search system. This system is limited to detecting only one type of CTC at a time, making the process both time-consuming and costly.

Researchers from the University of Queensland, in collaboration with oncologists at the Olivia Newton-John Cancer Research Institute (ONJCRI), have discovered a more effective method to track multiple circulating tumor cells (CTCs) using gold nanoparticles.

Their technology proved that it could find and track, in real-time, multiple types of circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in a single test.

The method involves coating gold nanoparticles with different proteins or antibodies that detect CTCs by analyzing them under laser light.

The image below from the study shows how the proteins lit up the different types of cancer cells after the laser light was directed toward the gold nanoparticles.

Tracking and monitoring the diversity of these cells doesn't only help scientists know if a tumor is metastasizing; it also helps them figure out how well the patient is responding to their current treatment.

For example, in using this new system, if a physician sees that there are fewer circulating tumor cells in the test, then they would know that their patient's treatment is working.

However, if the test indicates a higher number of circulating tumor cells, the patient's treatment would need to be re-evaluated.

Professor Matt Trau, a University of Queensland's Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN), stated the following about their discoveries:

Professor Trau went on to say that he hoped "the technology can be developed into a simple hand-held device."

Remote-Controlled Gold NanoRods
Energize T-Cells for
Precision Immunotherapy

Remote controls make many parts of our lives easier. 

Now, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) have invented a way for a remote control to switch T-Cells (white blood cells) 'on or off' to attack and kill malignant tumors on command with the help of gold nanorods.

T-Cells are a type of white blood cell that the body creates to fight off diseases; however, some tumors can turn "off" T-Cells, making them no longer a threat to the tumor's existence.

In addition, in today's immunotherapy, T-Cells are taken from a patient, then modified and harvested outside the body, and then reintroduced into the patient's bloodstream.

But, typically, once the T-Cells are reintroduced into a patient's body, physicians lose control over the T-cells' movements.

However, Georgia Tech's new method of immunotherapy has made it possible to turn T-Cells into a precision instrument to fight cancer with the help of heat-sensitive proteins and gold nanorods.

In the initial phase of the study, T-cells were altered and given a protein that functioned as a genetic switch. When activated, this protein enhanced the T-cell's capacity to locate and eliminate cancer cells by more than 200 times its typical capacity.

In the next part of the study, researchers injected the modified T-Cells and gold nanorods into a tumor.

Once the T-cells and gold nanorods were in the tumor, an infrared laser was shown onto the gold nanorods, heating them and switching the modified T-cells "On," killing the cancer.

In addition, when the laser was not shown on the gold nanoparticles, the T-Cells would switch "Off" because the body's temperature isn't high enough to activate the T-Cells.

The bioengineers found that the T-Cell switch worked best between 40 to 42 degrees Celsius (104–107.6 F), high enough to not react to the highest fevers and low enough to not affect healthy tissue or the modified T-Cells.

It was established that every element of the experiments functioned, and the study was successful in mice.

The research was successful in mice, confirming that all components worked. Researchers at Georgia Tech are advancing their immunotherapy treatments for more aggressive cancers to better combat cancer.

Article about this research is found here: Remote-control shoots laser at nano-gold to turn on cancer-killing immune cells - Science Daily

See the published Abstract and Graphic here: Remote Control of Mammalian Cells with Heat-Triggered Gene Switches and Photothermal Pulse Trains - ACS Publications

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Thank You for your Time.

Take Care & God Bless,

Steve

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