Using carbon nanotubes to seek and destroy anthrax toxin and other harmful proteins

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Transmission electron microscope images show carbon nanotubes conjugated with anthrax toxin before (a b) and after (c d) exposure to ultraviolet light. This light caused the adsorbed toxin to deactivate and fall off the nanotube which is why the stru ...
Transmission electron microscope images show carbon nanotubes conjugated with anthrax toxin before (a, b) and after (c, d) exposure to ultraviolet light. This light caused the adsorbed toxin to deactivate and fall off the nanotube, which is why the structures in pictures c and d are smaller in diameter than those in pictures a and b. Credit: Rensselaer/Ravi Kane

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed a new way to seek out specific proteins, including dangerous proteins such as anthrax toxin, and render them harmless using nothing but light. The technique lends itself to the creation of new antibacterial and antimicrobial films to help curb the spread of germs, and also holds promise for new methods of seeking out and killing tumors in the human body.


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