PEARLs Nanoparticle Target and Treat Tumors

The nanoparticle called as PEARLs (photo-thermal enhancing auto-regulating liposomes) can absorb light, generate heat and ablate the tumor.

A smart organic biodegradable nanoparticle has been developed by Dr. Gang Zheng and a team of biomedical researchers. The nanoparticle uses heat and light in a controlled manner to potentially target and ablate tumors with greater precision.

The proof-of-concept findings are published in the leading chemistry journal Angewandte Chemie. This provides a viable approach to boosting the clinical utility of photo-thermal therapy in treating cancer, says Dr. Zheng, Senior Scientist at Princess Margaret and Professor of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto.

Novel Nanoparticle to Deliver Powerful RNA Interference Drugs Developed By Sanford-Burnham Researchers
An important approach for treating diseases such as cancer and heart disease is silencing genes that have malfunctioned.

‘The ‘smart’ nanoparticle called PEARLs is a promising new way to heat and ablate larger volumes of a tumor with minimal damage to the surrounding tissues.’

In the lab, using phantom models, the "smart" nanoparticle the team has dubbed PEARLs - photo-thermal enhancing auto-regulating liposomes - showed how it could solve the two bottlenecks currently preventing the more effective use of photo-thermal therapy with patients. These are overheating of tissue that can cause collateral damage during treatment, and the inability to ablate larger tumor volumes because the light stops traveling when it is absorbed.

Dr. Zheng, a chemist, explains: "Our smart nanoparticle is super cool. It can absorb light, generate heat and ablate the tumor. It's a thermal sensor, and once it reaches the desired ablation temperature of 55C, it becomes invisible allowing the light to move deeper into more areas of tumor and repeat the treatment process.

"The result is a promising new way to heat and ablate larger volumes of the tumor with minimal damage to surrounding tissues in a controlled and precise way. The next step is to conduct pre-clinical studies to test the concept further."

A Nanoparticle can Light Up and Treat Atherosclerosis
Atherosclerosis is a disease in which plaque builds up inside arteries, and a nanoparticle can simultaneously light up and treat atherosclerotic plaques.

For the past 10 years at Princess Margaret, Dr. Zheng's research has focused on advancing nanoparticle technology by harnessing light, heat and sound to advance tumor imaging and targeted treatment.

Shape Matters In DNA Nanoparticle Therapy: Study
In treating cancer and other diseases, researchers from Johns Hopkins and Northwestern universities have discovered how to control the shape of nanoparticles that move DNA through the body.

Source-Eurekalert

New Way to Successfully Give Nanoparticle Therapeutics Orally Developed
A new type of nanoparticle developed by scientists can be taken orally and gets successfully absorbed through the digestive tract.