German scientists have developed nanocapsules – small self-propelled carbon nanotubes that will transport drugs to affected organs or deliver them directly to cancerous tumors, reported the IFW-Dresden and New Scientist portals.
A team of scientists from the Leibniz-Institut fuer Festkoerper- und Werkstoffforschung Dresden (IFW – Dresden) led by prof. Samuel Sanchez developed nanomotors – small sections of carbon nanotubes coated inside with platinum.
According to them in an article published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society, nanocapsules are intended to be a means of rapid transport for anti-cancer drugs used in chemotherapy, or drugs in the treatment of organ inflammations in the treatment of inpatient treatment facilities such as hospitals and clinics. They would be used in cases where the duration of the drug’s action is the most important and every hour counts for the patient.
The nano-rockets have their own fuel – after filling the platinum-coated nanotubes inside with a warm, weak hydrogen peroxide solution, platinum acts as a catalyst and breaks down the solution into oxygen and hydrogen. The outgoing gas microbubbles create a thrust causing the nanotube to move. These nanotubes have a maximum speed of 200 lengths per second – faster than any virus or bacteria. They can be controlled by using a magnetic field and by filling the nanoscale with a warmer or colder hydrogen peroxide solution. After use, they can be directed into the intestine and removed from the body by using a magnetic field.
Hydrogen peroxide, however, is poisonous to the body, the more so as the nanoscale would have to work in the blood or body fluids. Chemists from IFW-Dresden recognized the concentration of 0,25 percent. Hydrogen peroxide in the fuel of the nano-rocket is not entirely safe and they are currently working on a fuel based on the breakdown of glucose, which would fully meet the safety requirements.
If successful, the IFW-Dresden scientists say, they will be ready for the first clinical trials in the next few years. (PAP)