A University of Massachusetts team has created a nanoparticle that could potentially transform the way different diseases, including cancer, are treated. The approach combines two methods that allow medicine to be delivered to targeted cells more effectively.
At the moment, one of the best new ways to deliver anti-cancer medicine is by using biologics (i.e., protein-based medications). The major benefits of this method are that the biologics have the capacity to replace proteins that have malfunctioned within a cell, and these drugs have minimal adverse side effects. The chief downside of biologics is that the particles are large, which limits their capacity to reach all affected cells.
A second method of treatment involves the use of an antibody drug conjugate (“ADC”). These can deliver tiny doses of cancer drugs to specific cells being targeted. The downside with this approach is that ADCs are toxic and only a limited amount of therapeutic material (medicine) can be transported using this method.
This is where the UMass research team comes in. As Khushboo Singh, a co-lead author of the research explains, their novel platform combines ADCs and biologics in a way that capitalizes on each modality’s strengths while limiting the disadvantages.
The group engineered a PAC (protein-antibody conjugate). This nanoparticle’s work is explained using the analogy of a delivery envelope. The antibodies inside the PAC serve as the address written on the envelope, and the contents inside the envelope are the proteins designed to fight cancer. The envelope is then used to send the cancer treatment to the appropriate cells of the body without affecting normal cells. This reduces the possibility of adverse side effects from manifesting when a patient takes the medication.
The PAC contains a “polymer brush” that serves two key functions. First, the brush carries antibodies whose work is to identify any cancerous cells in the pathway. Secondly, the polymer brush carries biologics of a sizeable quantity while keeping their payload intact until a target cancerous cell is reached. At this point, the biologics are released to destroy the cancerous cells.
At the moment, the UMass team has managed to make the PAC carry up to four times the quantity of biologic matter which an ADC on its own could carry. The researchers assert that they can use a number of methods to increase the payload capacity of the PAC even more.
Bin Liu, another lead author of the study, says this breakthrough isn’t only applicable to the treatment of cancer. It widens the possibilities for biomedicine and could be helpful in the treatment of genetic diseases or other abnormalities within human cells.
The work done by this research team is likely to be a further contribution towards the attainment of customized cancer care as championed by entities such as Predictive Oncology (NASDAQ: POAI).
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Predictive Oncology (NASDAQ: POAI) are available in the company’s newsroom at http://ibn.fm/POAI
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