Heat-generated plasmonic nanoparticles, with their potential use as cancer-killing agents, have seen positive results in both in vitro and in vivo studies, researchers say.
Through the use of a single-particle and PET (positron emission tomography) -based platforms have allowed researchers from the University of Copenhagen to quantify the “photothermal efficiency of near-infrared (NIR) -resonant silica-gold nanoshells (AuNSs).” The results were compared against those achieved through the heating of colloidal spherical, solid gold nanoparticles (AuNPs).
Following the experiments, researchers noted that both in vitro and in vivo, which used live mice as test subjects, showed the heat generation of the resonant AuNSs performed better than nonresonant AuNPs.
The cancerous cells of the mice were injected with 80- to 150-nm nanoparticles. The cells were later irradiated using an NIR laser, leading to the heating up of the particles. The outcome was damage or death to the cancer cells with the use of 150-nm particles being the most effective.
Conventional radiation therapy, as compared to NIR laser light causes no burn damage to the tissue. Following an hour of treatment, the researchers found they could see, through the use of the PET scan, that the cancer cells had been eradicated. The effect of the cancer cells being eradicated lasted for two days following the treatment.
In the longer term, researchers will inject nanoparticles into the bloodstream, where they end up in the tumors that may have metastasized. The results will continue to be measured through PET scans and the length of time the treatment will continue to show results will be tracked with the outcome of lifetime eradication of the subjects’ cancer cells.
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