To treat brain cancer, nanoparticles were stuffed with scorpion venom
By combining iron oxide nanoparticles and a substance from scorpion venom, scientists from the University of Washington were able to stop the spread of 98% of malignant tumor cells in the brain of mice.
Note that in this case we are not talking about destroying cells or stopping their division, but about reducing their size. After all, cancer cells can stretch out, penetrating into the surrounding tissues and destroying them. Sometimes it also leads to the appearance of new foci of a malignant tumor.
The fact that scorpion venom is able to fight the spread of cancer cells has been known for a long time (however, the best indicator did not exceed 45%). To increase the effectiveness, the active substance chlorotoxin (chlorotoxin) was combined with nanoparticles, which led to the "stopping" of 98% of cells.
This result is especially important in relation to brain cancer, since this tumor is extremely difficult to remove with surgery for obvious reasons. In addition, the spread of such tumors is much more dangerous than the rest – it threatens a person with death within a very short period of time.
A few years ago, scientists discovered that the peptide chlorotoxin extracted from the venom of the scorpion species Leiurus quinquestriatus interacts with the MMP2 receptor protein on the surface of cancer cells in the brain.
A – the structure of a nanoparticle with chlorotoxin molecules (green-blue ribbons) on its surface is shown,
B – this is how the nanoparticle is fixed on the cancer cell,
C – as more and more nanoparticles are absorbed, the cell slows down its spread
(illustration by University of Washington).
The protein and the peptide bind, and the cell draws in this "pair". As a result, cancer cells lose their ability to penetrate into neighboring tissues, with fewer proteins on the surface, it becomes more difficult for them to "stretch" and occupy new areas of the brain.
However, as we have already said, chlorotoxin leads to "inhibition" of the spread by about half.
That is why American scientists decided to improve the technology and applied chlorotoxin to iron oxide nanoparticles (as a result, about 20 molecules were "fixed" on each one).
"When a tumor cell "swallows" one nanoparticle, it is "saturated" with several chlorotoxin molecules at once," says researcher Miqin Zhang.
Apparently, this explains the increase in the efficiency of the new technology almost twice in comparison with traditional methods.
The first column shows untreated cancer cells,
further – treated only with chlorotoxin, a mixture of nanoparticles and a component of the poison and only with nanoparticles.
The upper and lower photos differ in the method of shooting (University of Washington photo).
Despite the fact that Transmolecular is already testing chlorotoxin as a drug for humans, a cocktail of nanoparticles and a component of the poison will begin to undergo clinical trials no earlier than 5-7 years.
Read more about the study in the press release of the university and the authors' article in the journal Small.
Portal "Eternal youth" www.vechnayamolodost.ru based on the materials of the "Membrane"21.04.2009