Nanocletes Poison Cancer: Czech Scientists Breakthrough
The discovery of an international team led by scientists from Ceitec Masaryk University could significantly improve cancer treatment. They have developed new molecular formations that can help better target the active substances for cancer cells, thereby increasing the effectiveness of treatment.
The research team created the so -called “supramolecular nanocles”. It is a miniature, the eye of an invisible molecular structure that can transmit active substances directly into cancer cells. The inspiration for this research was the natural transport processes that take place in the human body.
Classic cancer drugs destroy these cells very effectively, the problem is that they also equally damage their surroundings, ie healthy cells. The new treatment will take “poison”, in this case toxic palladium, directly to a particular cell, so this risk is not threatened.
“We have created these structures using molecules commonly found in the digestive tract – bile acids, which we have slightly modified into the form of so -called organic ligands and combined with metal ions of palladium. said Ondřej Jurček, head of the research team who worked at the institute at the time of the Institute.
Cage that will build themselves
The surprisingly simple process of making these formations is that the individual ingredients themselves create a stable structure. This process, which scientists call “self -folding”, is fast and efficient. The individual building blocks dissolve the scientists, warm up slightly, and in just an hour the molecules themselves are organized into the structure of nanoclines.
“The most demanding part of this work is the structural analysis of the arrangement of the clipboard, ie how the individual building blocks are connected. We had to combine analytical methods and create models through computing chemistry until the computer model corresponded to the product in the tube. It is lengthy and demanding detective work.”
The structures created by scientists underwent testing in biological studies, which brought other surprising results. The combination of organic ligand and the metal ion of Palladium has led to almost 60 times the toxic palladium entry into cancer cells, causing them to reduce and suppress viability in half. The results showed that a comparable dose of Palladium without nanoclishes had no significant effect.
The authors believe that this research has great potential for society. If these new molecular formations are used in practice, they can bring more efficient treatment methods that would be more targeted and gentle on healthy tissues. This could mean minor side effects for patients and faster regeneration after treatment. In addition, these molecules can also inspire new therapeutic approaches in other areas of medicine.
