A New Cure for Cancer? Killer Nanotubes

         Researchers at the University of Cambridge think they may have discovered a new way to treat mesothelioma. Mesothelioma is a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos and is notoriously very challenging to treat and is common in the United Kingdom due to widespread use of asbestos after WWII. In the lab, researchers are injecting gold nanotubes into the cancer cells which explode when heated up. Nanotubes are small hollow cylinders that are approximately 1/1000^th the width of human hair (which is about 180 micrometers). Once in the cell, the cells can be targeted with a laser, and the nanotubes absorb the light. Once the nanotubes have absorbed the light, they heat up which kills the cancer cell. The researchers are able to customize the nanotubes to different types of cells based off what wavelength of light they can absorb and the microstructure.  The researchers hope that this form of cancer treatment will be able to target only the cancer cells, leaving the healthy ones unharmed. Additionally, by using a laser they are able to penetrate deep into the tissue without damaging surrounding cells. 

            The nanotubes are created by depositing gold in solution on silver nanorods. The silver then dissolves, leaving a hollow cylinder—a nanotube. This technique is performed at room temperature, which the researchers hope will allow the manufacture of the nanotubes possible on a broader scale for cancer treatment. In the future, they plan to add medicine to the nanotubes for even more targeted cancer therapy. 

          The image below is fluorescence microscopy and demonstrates the nanotubes (green) entering the mesothelioma cell (purple). The researchers observed that the nanotubes lie close to the nucleus of the cell (blue) after entering.

 

References

Sunjie Ye et al, Exploring High Aspect Ratio Gold Nanotubes as Cytosolic Agents: Structural Engineering and Uptake into Mesothelioma Cells, Small (2020). DOI: 10.1002/smll.202003793

 

Univeristy of Cambridge, Tiny Golden Bullets Could Help Tackle Asbestos-Related Cancers, Phys.org (October 26, 2020) https://phys.org/news/2020-10-tiny-golden-bullets-tackle-asbestos-related.html