Controlling Spatial Heat and Light Distribution by Using Photothermal Enhancing Auto-Regulated Liposomes (PEARLs).
Dr. Gang Zheng and a team of biomedical researchers have discovered a “smart” organic, biodegradable nanoparticle that uses heat and light in a controlled manner to potentially target and ablate tumours with greater precision. The proof-of-concept findings provide a viable approach to boosting the clinical utility of photo-thermal therapy in treating cancer, says Dr. Zheng, Senior Scientist at the Princess Margaret and Professor of Medical Biophysics at the University of Toronto.He talks about and demonstrates the research at https://youtu.be/EEN6Mz5iWBI.
In the lab, using phantom models, the “smart” nanoparticle the team has dubbed PEARLs – photo-thermal enhancing auto-regulating liposomes – showed how it can solve the 2 bottlenecks currently preventing more effective use of photo-thermal therapy with patients. These are overheating of tissue that can cause collateral damage during treatment, and the inability to ablate larger tumour volumes because the light stops travelling when it is absorbed. Dr. Zheng, a chemist, explains: “Our smart nanoparticle is super cool. It can absorb light, generate heat and ablate the tumour. It’s a thermal sensor and once it reaches the desired ablation temperature of 55C, it becomes invisible allowing the light to move deeper into more areas of tumour and repeat the treatment process.
“The result is a promising new way to heat and ablate larger volumes of tumour with minimal damage to surrounding tissues in a controlled and precise way. The next step is to conduct pre-clinical studies to test the concept further.”
http://www.uhn.ca/corporate/News/PressReleases/Pages/smart_nanoparticle_called_PEARLs_a_promising_gem_to_target_treat_tumours_with_greater_precision.aspx
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