Gold nanoparticles enhance cancer treatment: study
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi, October 4: After a study that showed that an injection before surgery could significantly improve the chances of recovery from cancer, another finding has claimed that a novel site-specific drug delivery method using gold nanoparticles could also enhance management and treatment of the killer disease.
Over 200 different types of cancers are being treated through surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. Doctors state that many of these cancers can be cured if detected early and treated effectively.
However, the available treatments are time-taking, expensive, and trigger numerous other side-effects and the actual health benefits of the therapy do not reach to the cancer patients effectively.
“Researchers at Amity University Rajasthan, Jaipur have developed therapeutic agents with the help of nano-biotechnological approaches using a unique solution of ‘gold nanoparticles’ that helps in improving the site-specific drug delivery for cancer disease management and its effective treatment,’ said the Ministry of Science and Technology on Tuesday.
A team of researchers consisting of Dr Hemant Kumar Daima, Dr Akhela Umapathi and Prof SL Kothari from the Amity Centre for Nanobiotechnology and Nanomedicine (ACNN) formulated ‘gold nanoparticles’ solution with a distinctive functional surface containing biomolecules and antibiotics for improved anticancer activity through selective generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS).
The study on the effect of a low cost anesthetic injection was done by leading researchers from the Tata Cancer Hospital, Mumbai.
“The results have revealed that the appropriate surface corona on the gold nanoparticles was essential for effective cancer treatment in a selective manner,” noted the Ministry, while sharing details of the findings of the study.
The research was extended toward lung cancer cells using functional silver nanoparticles. The selective anti-cancer effect originating from surface chemistry of silver nanoparticles was demonstrated in a paper published in the study published in the journal ‘Colloids and Surfaces: A physiochemical and engineering aspects’.
“Both the studies have provided deeper understanding regarding the mechanism of anti-cancer actions of the functional nanoparticles,” noted the Ministry.
The research was a global effort with researchers from University of Miyazaki, Japan; and RMIT University, Australia actively participating in it. Now, the team is planning clinical studies on the formulated nanoparticles.
“Some of the important physicochemical characterization and biological studies of gold nanoparticles were performed on fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), fluorescent microscopy facilities,” added the Ministry.
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