Light scalpel

It is known that short flashes of a femtosecond laser (lasting one quadrillionth, 10-15 seconds) can make nanometer holes in silicone if it is pre-coated with gold nanoparticles. Michel Meunier, a professor at the Montreal School of Engineering, has set himself the task of finding out whether it is possible to repeat the same thing with organic matter.

At first, the scientist worked on cell cultures in vitro. The main difficulty was to make holes in the cell membrane, so as not to violate its integrity. The use of gold nanoparticles performing the function of nanolenses allowed the researcher to concentrate the laser light energy at a wavelength equal to 800 nanometers (near infrared light). At this wavelength, cells absorb very little energy, which helps to preserve their integrity.

Then Meunier and his team decided to test the technology on cells in a living organism. The choice fell on the retina of the eye. The main problem with using a femtosecond laser in this case is that the retina is part of the central nervous system, consisting of layers of nerve cells with different functions. Unlike most other cells, neurons do not regenerate in case of death. It was decided first of all to test the technology on healthy cells, as they are more predictable. The use of a femtosecond laser and gold nanoparticles in combination with antibodies that help direct exposure to a specific type of cell has yielded good results: holes have been made in cell membranes through which substances or even genes can be purposefully delivered. The cells remained intact.

Thus, scientists have obtained a technology that allows them to act only on diseased cells, without affecting healthy areas. In the future, this approach may help in the treatment of degenerative retinal diseases, which currently affect hundreds of millions of people around the world.

Article by Wilson et al. In Vivo Laser-Mediated Retinal Ganglion Cell Optoporation Using KV1.1 Conjugated Gold Nanoparticles is published in the journal Nano Letters.

Anastasia Poznyak, portal "Eternal Youth" http://vechnayamolodost.ru / based on the materials of Polytechnique Montréal: A major step towards non-viral ocular gene therapy using laser and nanotechnology.