Bio & Medicine news

When It Comes to Drug Delivery, Size Matters

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 20, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- One of the great promises of nanotechnologies lies in its ability to create drug-containing nanoparticles decorated with targeting molecules that recognize and bind to cancer cells, providing drug delivery ...

A Tiny Cage of Gold Responds to Light, Opening to Empty Its Contents

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 19, 2009 | 5 / 5 (3) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Washington University in St. Louis have developed a polymer-coated gold nanocage that not only opens in response to light to release a small amount of a drug payload, but then closes when the ...

Detecting the Undetectable in Prostate Cancer Testing

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 18, 2009 | 4 / 5 (1) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of Northwestern University researchers, using an extremely sensitive nanotechnology-based tool known as the biobarcode system, has detected previously undetectable levels of prostate-specific antigen ...

Findings show nanomedicine promising for treating spinal cord injuries

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 08, 2009 | 4.5 / 5 (4) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at Purdue University have discovered a new approach for repairing damaged nerve fibers in spinal cord injuries using nano-spheres that could be injected into the blood shortly ...

Nanoparticles for gene therapy improve

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 06, 2009 | 5 / 5 (5) | 3

(PhysOrg.com) -- About five years ago, Professor Janet Sawicki at the Lankenau Institute in Pennsylvania read an article about nanoparticles developed by MIT's Robert Langer for gene therapy, the insertion ...

Magnetic nanoparticles to simultaneously diagnose, monitor and treat

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 06, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Whether it's magnetic nanoparticles (mNPs) giving an army of 'therapeutically armed' white blood cells direction to invade a deadly tumour's territory, or the use of mNPs to target specific nerve channels ...

Nanoparticles may cause DNA damage across a cellular barrier

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 05, 2009 | 4.3 / 5 (9) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Scientists have shown in the laboratory that metal nanoparticles damaged the DNA in cells on the other side of a cellular barrier. The research, by the University of Bristol, is published ...

Two-In-One Punch Knocks Out Drug Resistant Cancer Cells

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 04, 2009 | 5 / 5 (4) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- Cancer cells, like bacteria, can develop resistance to drug therapy, leading to relapse of disease. One approach showing promise in overcoming multidrug resistance in tumors is to combine two different anticancer ...

Nanostructured Integrated Circuit Detects Type and Severity of Cancer

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 03, 2009 | 5 / 5 (3) | 0

(PhysOrg.com) -- A team of investigators from the University of Toronto have used nanomaterials to develop an inexpensive microchip sensitive enough to quickly determine the type and severity of a patient's cancer so that ...

Where do nanomaterials go in the body?

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Nov 02, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 1

Tiny, engineered nanomaterials can already be found in many consumer products, and have been hailed as having widespread future uses in areas ranging from medicine to industrial processes. However, little is known about what ...

Nano-Scale Drug Delivery For Chemotherapy

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Oct 31, 2009 | 4.7 / 5 (12) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Going smaller could bring better results, especially when it comes to cancer-fighting drugs.

Magnetism Turns Drug Release On and Off

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Oct 30, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

Many medical conditions, such as cancer, diabetes and chronic pain, require medications that cannot be taken orally, but must be dosed intermittently, on an as-needed basis, over a long period of time. A few delivery techniques ...

Nanoparticles Detect and Purge Metastases in Lymph Nodes

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Oct 30, 2009 | 5 / 5 (6) | 0

Colonoscopy represents one of the great weapons against cancer. In one step, a physician can find precancerous lesions in the colon and then cut them out, an on-the-spot intervention that prevents cancer from developing. ...

Gold Nanoparticles Delivery Platinum Warheads to Tumors

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Oct 29, 2009 | 4.9 / 5 (7) | 2

(PhysOrg.com) -- Cisplatin is one of the most powerful and effective drugs for treating a wide variety of cancers, but serious side effects ultimately limit the drug's use and effectiveness. Now, however, researchers have ...

Next-generation microcapsules deliver 'chemicals on demand'

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Oct 28, 2009 | not rated yet | 0

Scientists in California are reporting development of a new generation of the microcapsules used in carbon-free copy paper, in which capsules burst and release ink with pressure from a pen. The new microcapsules ...

Knocking nanoparticles off the socks

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Oct 28, 2009 | 3 / 5 (2) | 0

Scientists in Switzerland are reporting results of one of the first studies on the release of silver nanoparticles from laundering those anti-odor, anti-bacterial socks now on the market. Their findings, scheduled ...

Study shows how carbon nanotubes can affect lining of the lungs

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Oct 25, 2009 | 4.8 / 5 (10) | 1

(PhysOrg.com) -- Carbon nanotubes are being considered for use in everything from sports equipment to medical applications, but a great deal remains unknown about whether these materials cause respiratory ...

Nanowire biocompatibility in the brain: So far so good

Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine

Oct 22, 2009 | 5 / 5 (1) | 0

The biological safety of nanotechnology, in other words, how the body reacts to nanoparticles, is a hot topic. Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have managed for the first time to carry out successful experiments involving ...