via Reuters and Physorg.com

Researchers have found a way to target cancer cells by injecting tiny particles that will attack only the diseased cells while leaving healthy cells unscathed, according to a study released on Monday.

A team of researchers working at MIT and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston laced tiny particles with lethal doses of chemotherapy and when injected they targeted cancer cells alone.

…”A single injection of our nanoparticles completely eradicated the tumors in five of the seven treated animals, and the remaining animals also had a significant tumor reduction, compared to the controls,” said Dr. Omid Farokhzad, assistant professor at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School.

… To make sure that only the correct cells are hit, the nanoparticles are “decorated” on the outside with targeting molecules called aptamers, or tiny chunks of genetic material.

Like homing devices, the aptamers specifically recognize the surface molecules on cancer cells, while avoiding normal cells.

The team chose nanoparticles as drug-delivery vehicles because they are so small that living cells will readily swallow them when at the cell’s surface.