Study from University of São Paulo Explores Gold Nanoparticles for Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment

Cancer is a very complex disease and currently has no cure. However, this does not mean that new ways of identifying and treating this disease should not be sought. This is the objective of the USP patent Cancer Treatment Platform Method . “Basically, the idea of ​​the project was to biomimic an inorganic particle and make it more biocompatible. In this way, they are transformed into a hybrid system that is capable of making a diagnosis and, at the same time, providing treatment,” explains Paula Lins, a PhD student at the Physics Institute of USP São Carlos. 

In the case of this technology, the inorganic particle is gold nanorods, that is, particles of the nano order — but very small —, which would be coated with extracellular vesicles. This coating is responsible for biomimicry, which is basically imitating a biological structure.

How it works

“We already know that they can image the location where it accumulates and, at the same time, if we shine a near-infrared laser, we can heat it locally,” says Paula. When coupled to vesicles — which have a function of directing and communicating between cells — the nanorods go from being passive to active in these tasks. 

“This technology is capable of increasing the internalization of theranostic agents — responsible for combining diagnostic and therapeutic nanoscientific applications to form a single agent — in key cells of the tumor environment, allowing high selectivity for cancer treatment,” adds the researcher.

Development

Although the project is still in its early stages, all research is welcome, given the complexity of cancer. In vitro tests are being performed, but there is a need for preclinical tests, i.e. in vivo tests , which require greater structure and investment to better defend the technology for use in humans. 

“I believe that inorganic nanoparticles are also lacking approval, for example, by Anvisa, which is still a process under debate. I believe that these two steps are the next steps to become applicable,” says Paula.