Every time there are news headlines about the fact that scientists have defeated cancer, this leads to unthinkable experiences for thousands (sometimes even hundreds of thousands) of people. Therefore, in the description of this study, we tried to be extremely correct. So that you understand what is really done and what it can lead to.
What is doneThe scientific team of scientists NUST "MISiS" and the Russian National Research Medical University. N.I. Pirogov conducted successful preclinical studies of a new anticancer drug based on magnetite nanoparticles.
Preclinics - this is the second stage of testing, which is carried out on animals. The first stage is testing on cells. The third is on human volunteers.
Tests have shown an increase in the life expectancy of sick mice by 50% in the case of use for the treatment of innovative drug. That is, the main thing is proved - system efficiency. The results are published in the journal
Nanomedicine .
The drug is a combination of two components: spherical magnetite nanoparticles, inside which the drug is placed cytostatic (toxic substance that destroys tumor cells) and a vector molecule, which acts as an address, that is, leads the particle with the poison specifically to the affected organ, without accumulating in healthy body tissues.
"Scientists of NITU" MISiS "under the leadership of the head of the laboratory" Biomedical nanomaterials "NITU" MISiS "Ph.D. Maxim Abakumov has been working with magnetite nanoparticles for the fourth year, using them to create antitumor preparations. At present, the laboratory’s research team is preparing to proceed to the next stage of preclinical studies, which are planned as early as 2019, ”says Alevtina Chernikova, Rector of NITU“ MISiS ”.
The next stage involves the study of the drug for body toxicity, side effects, as well as the subtleties of pharmacokinetics.
The vector molecule is an anti-vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) protein, a signaling protein produced by cells to stimulate the formation of the embryonic vascular system. The molecule, therefore, works according to the “key-lock” scheme, finding and joining only a specific cell type. In this study, scientists were among the first in the world to apply a vector molecule in an unusual functionality - it used to be used as an independent drug. However, monotherapy using these antibodies to date has not shown high efficacy. However, this does not make this protein less promising as an “address” for drug delivery, which has been demonstrated in current work.
“Studies have shown that the proposed therapeutic scheme is effective: experiments in vitro and then in vivo demonstrated that the life expectancy of animals undergoing treatment with the drug increased by 50% from 23 to 39 days,” says the head of the scientific group, the head of the laboratory “Biomedical Nanomaterials »NITU MISiS Maxim Abakumov. - In addition, the proposed substance showed good visualization of the tumor tissue in the process of MRI studies. This could potentially be applied to facilitate the work of the surgeons during the operation in order to designate and visually fix the edges of the affected organ. "
In addition to the drug delievery scheme (targeted drug delivery), which includes the current study, iron oxide particles show good results in the method of therapy by hyperthermia. It consists in the following: magnetite nanoparticles are introduced into the affected organ, where they accumulate, and then exposed to an alternating electromagnetic field with certain parameters, as a result of which they warm up to 43-45 degrees and warm the surrounding cancer cells, which die in this case. It is important to note that earlier it was shown that cancer cells are more sensitive to temperature changes than healthy ones, and it also allows you to leave healthy tissue intact.
Research continues, we will tell about the news.