Strangle the tumor

Nanorobots capable of destroying cancer cells have been developed

Ilya Vedmedenko, Naked Science

Chinese and American researchers have made progress in the fight against dangerous oncological diseases. The unique nanorobots developed by them create blood clots in blood vessels, thereby depriving cancer cells of "food".

The incidence of malignant tumors is constantly growing: approximately 6 million new cases are registered in the world every year. One of the reasons for this is the aging of the population of post-industrial countries. The fact is that most of the tumors develop in people whose age exceeds 50 years. At the same time, every second cancer sufferer is over 60 years old. The total mortality from cancer ranks third worldwide immediately after diseases of the cardiovascular and respiratory systems.

Now Hao Yan from the University of Arizona located in the USA, together with colleagues, has developed nanorobots that can act as "killers" of cancer cells. They are autonomous robots built from DNA molecules and capable of delivering certain types of drugs inside tumors with the highest accuracy.

Upon contact with a cancer cell, the nanorobots "unfold" and their contents come into contact with the environment. The active substance creates a blood clot that blocks the movement of blood and thereby prevents the penetration of nutrients into the tumor.

Thrombin-loaded DNA Nanorobot from ASU Biodesign Institute on Vimeo.

One of the main advantages of the concept is that, in theory, it allows you to effectively resist a variety of tumors, because the mechanisms of nutrition of cancer cells are similar.

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