Fighting cancer and Ebola with nanoparticles
In medicine, finding a substance that attacks cancerous tumors without destroying the healthy tissue around it is harder than it seems. From targeted remedies such as monoclonal antibodies to surgery, cancer has still managed to elude a treatment that discretely and separately attacks it alone. Nanotechnologies, however, the manipulation of matter at a molecular and even atomic scale to penetrate living cells, are holding out the promise of opening a new front against deadly conditions from cancer to Ebola. In one study, Dr Webster's team is developing methods to attach gold nanoparticles to cancer cells. While nanoparticle technology still has many years of research ahead of it, nanostructured surfaces are already becoming part of the medical firmament. One area where nanotechnology is shaping up as a medical game changer is in the area of medical sensors. Dr. Webster plans to present his research as a member of the American Anatomists Association at the Experimental Biology Conference 2015 on March 28-31.
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