Particle Characterization System Critical to Development of Brain Tumor Illumination

A particle characterization system is proving to be a creative research tool for advanced healthcare applications such as gene therapy and selective-target carrier molecules.

The University of Washington (Seattle, WA, USA) researchers reported that accurate zeta potential and particle size measurements were critical to their successful development of fluorescent, tumor-targeting iron oxide nanoparticles. Able to safely cross the blood-brain barrier and selectively illuminate brain cancer cells during a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scan, the innovative molecules resulting from this research should make brain cancer imaging much safer.

"Safe molecular penetration of the blood-brain barrier depends on a particle's size, fat content, and electric charge. It wasn't until we obtained the Zetasizer Nano in 2006 that we were able to efficiently measure, monitor, and optimize these properties and develop nanoparticles that deliver the desired half-life in blood but remain stable long enough to support imaging,” explained Prof. Miqin Zhang, from the University of Washington's department of materials science and engineering. The Zetasizer Nano system was developed by Malvern Instruments (Malvern, UK).

The blood-brain barrier protects the brain from infection. Current imaging techniques require the injection of both dyes and a drug to forcefully open the barrier. Prof. Zhang and her team have formulated particles approximately 33 nm in diameter. Three times smaller in wet conditions than anything previously formulated in the lab, these particles can naturally penetrate the blood-brain barrier without exposing the patient to the risk of infection, and represent a highly significant advance in brain cancer imaging.

The Nanoparticle Lab within the University of Washington's department of materials science and engineering focuses its research on cancer diagnosis and treatment through imaging enhancement and targeted and controlled therapeutic payload delivery. This is accomplished by use of nanoconjugates or multifunctional nanovectors. A nanoconjugate is a chemically modified nanoparticle serving as a "vehicle” that carries biomolecules to target cells. The term "nanovector” here refers to a nanosized entity that plays a functional role in the perspective of therapeutics.

Malvern Instruments provides a range of complementary materials characterization tools that deliver interrelated measurements reflecting the complexities of particulates and disperse systems, nanomaterials and macromolecules. Analytic instruments from Malvern are used in the characterization of a wide variety of materials, from industrial bulk powders to nanomaterials and delicate macromolecules. A wide range of innovative technologies is combined with intelligent, user-friendly software. These systems provide industrially relevant data enabling the customers to make the connection between micro (such as particle size) and macro (bulk) material properties (rheology) and chemical composition (chemical imaging).

Particle size, particle shape, zeta potential, molecular weight, chemical composition and rheologic properties measurements are combined by advanced chromatography systems (GPC/SEC), extending Malvern's technologies for protein molecular weight, size, and aggregation measurements, and synthetic polymer molecular weight and distribution.

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