(Press-News.org) Scientists from the RIKEN Advanced Science Institute in Japan and University of California Los Angeles report a new nanoscale Velcro-like device that captures and releases tumor cells that have broken away from primary tumors and are circulating in the bloodstream.This new nanotechnology could be used for cancer diagnosis and give insight into the mechanisms of how cancer spreads throughout the body. The device provides a convenient and non-invasive alternative to biopsy, the current method for diagnosis of metastatic cancer. It could enable doctors to detect tumor cells that circulate in cancer patients' blood well before they subsequently colonize as tumors in other organs. The device also enables researchers to keep the tumor cells alive and subsequently study them.
The device was developed by a team led by Hsiao-hua Yu from the RIKEN Advanced Science Institute in Japan and Hsian-Rong Tseng from the Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology at the University of California Los Angeles, in research published online today in the journal Advanced Materials.
Similar cell-capture devices have been reported but this technology is unique in that it is capable of catching the tumor cells with great efficiency and releasing them with great cell viability. Blood is passed through the device like a filter that contains a molecule capable of adhering to tumor cells like Velcro and separating them with efficiency ranging from 40% to 70%. The cancer cells are retained by tiny temperature-responsive polymer brushes inside the device. At 37 degrees Celsius, these polymer brushes stick to the tumor cells, but when cooled to 4 degrees Celsius, they release them, allowing scientists to examine the cells.
"Until now, most devices have demonstrated the ability to capture circulating tumor cells with high efficiency. However, it is equally important to release these captured cells, to preserve and study them in order to obtain insightful information about them. This is the big difference with our device." Explains Hsiao-hua Yu, who led the team that developed the technique to coat the device with polymer brushes.
INFORMATION:
Reference
Shuang Hou, Haichao Zhao, Libo Zhao, Qinglin Shen, Kevin S. Wei, Daniel Y. Suh, Aiko Nakao, Bin Xiong, Shyh-Chyang Luo,Hsian-Rong Tseng,Hsiao-hua Yu "Capture and Stimulated Release of Circulating Tumor Cells on Polymer-Grafted Silicon Nanostructures." Advanced Materials, 2012,
About RIKEN
RIKEN is Japan's flagship research institute devoted to basic and applied research. Over 2500 papers by RIKEN researchers are published every year in reputable scientific and technical journals, covering topics ranging across a broad spectrum of disciplines including physics, chemistry, biology, medical science and engineering. RIKEN's advanced research environment and strong emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration has earned itself an unparalleled reputation for scientific excellence in Japan and around the world. Website: http://www.riken.jp/ Reach us on Twitter: @rikenresearch
About the RIKEN Advanced Science Institute
The RIKEN Advanced Science Institute (ASI) is an interdisciplinary research institute devoted to fostering creative, curiosity-driven basic research and sowing the seeds for innovative new projects. With more than 700 full-time researchers, the ASI acts as RIKEN's research core, supporting inter-institutional and international collaboration and integrating diverse scientific fields including physics, chemistry, engineering, biology and medical science.
New technology allows scientists to capture and preserve cancer cells circulating in the bloodstream
2012-12-17
[Attachments] See images for this press release:
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Surviving sepsis with LECT2
2012-12-17
Failure to launch an adequate immune response may be at the root of septic shock, according to a study published in The Journal of Experimental Medicine on December 17th.
Bacterial sepsis is a potentially deadly blood infection that results in massive immune activation and inflammation. Sepsis therapies have traditionally focused on quelling this exaggerated inflammatory response. But a recent study challenged this approach by showing that patients with sepsis had abnormally low levels of an inflammatory protein called LECT2.
The new study by Jiong Chen and colleagues ...
Study uncovers mechanism used by BRCA1 to suppress tumors
2012-12-17
WASHINGTON -- A new study by Georgetown University Medical Center researchers reveals how a well-known tumor suppressor gene may be functioning to stop cancer cell growth.
The findings, published online today in Oncogene, focus on the gene BRCA1, which is mutated in a majority of families who have hereditary breast and/or ovarian cancers, according to senior author Ronit I. Yarden, PhD, assistant professor in the Department of Human Science at the School of Nursing & Health Studies.
"There is a debate in the scientific community about whether BRCA1 enzymatic activity ...
New research predicts rising trend in India's Violent Land Conflicts; 130 districts struggle
2012-12-17
Contact: Jenna DiPaolo
jdipaolo@rightsandresources.org
202-412-0331
Coimbra Sirica
csirica@burnesscommunications.com
301-943-3287
Burness Communications
New research predicts rising trend in India's Violent Land Conflicts; 130 districts struggle
Experts cite role of India as leader among land-grabbing emerging economies; ignoring rights at home, Indian multi-nationals risk same mistakes abroad
NEW DELHI—(17 December 2012)—New research released today, on the eve of an international conference on land and forest rights, blames India's government agencies and ...
Cats are able to navigate complex combinations of wet and dry foods to achieve a consistent intake of protein, fat and carbohydrate
2012-12-17
Even when provided with complex combinations of different wet and dry foods, cats are able to select and combine the foods in different amounts to achieve a consistent intake of protein, fat and carbohydrate, i.e. macronutrient intake. Published this month in the Journal of Comparative Physiology B, the research shows that cats regulate their macronutrient intake by altering their food selection despite differences in the macronutrient content, moisture level and texture of foods.
The research was conducted by scientists from the WALTHAM® Centre for Pet Nutrition – the ...
Brain imaging identifies bipolar disorder risk in adolescents
2012-12-17
Researchers from the University of New South Wales and Black Dog Institute in Sydney, Australia have used brain imaging technology to show that young people with a known risk of bipolar (but as yet have no signs of the condition) have clear and quantifiable differences in brain activity when compared to controls.
"We found that the young people who had a parent or sibling with bipolar disorder had reduced brain responses to emotive faces, particularly a fearful face. This is an extremely promising breakthrough," says study leader UNSW Professor Philip Mitchell.
"We ...
What's in a genome?
2012-12-17
The species in question is the fruit fly Drosophila mauritiana, a close relative of the well known (and previously sequenced) Drosophila melanogaster that swarms around our fruit bowls in summer. Nolte and colleagues now present a complete genomic sequence, annotating it to indicate the various genes it contains. The information will naturally be extremely useful to all those who are working on this organism.
But the present study goes much, much further. Schlötterer's group has recently developed powerful analytic methods for measuring the genetic variability of populations. ...
Preventive detention for oxidizing agents
2012-12-17
Oxidative stress is believed to cause a number of diseases. Up to now, it has been common practice to measure oxidative stress levels by determining the oxidation state of a small molecule called glutathione in cell extracts. Scientists from the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) have been the first to discover that cells under stress deposit their oxidized glutathione in a cellular waste repository. This protects cells from oxidative stress – and questions the validity of the conventional measuring method.
Cancer, Alzheimer's, arteriosclerosis– ...
Adhesion disturbed by noise
2012-12-17
Imagine a solid ball rolling down a slightly inclined ramp. What could be perceived as child's play is the focus of serious theoretical research by Manoj Chaudhury and Partho Goohpattader, two physicists from Lehigh University, Bethlehem, Pensylvania, USA. Their study, which is about to be published in EPJ E, has one thing in common with childhood behaviour. It introduces a mischievous idea, namely studying the effect of random noise, such as vibrations, on the ball. They found it could lower the energy barrier to set the ball in motion.
The authors used a ramp with ...
Boreal bird species of conservation concern affected by climate change
2012-12-17
A protected area network should ensure the maintenance of biodiversity, but climate is changing rapidly, thereby creating further demand for the protected area network to be efficient in preserving biota. Due to climate change species ranges are expected to move polewards, which poses challenges to the protected area network.
Population changes of different bird species groups according to their habitat preferences in boreal protected areas in Finland were studied on the basis of large-scale bird censuses carried out in 1981 and in 2000. Mean temperatures rose clearly ...
Food insecurity predicts mental health problems in adolescents
2012-12-17
Washington D.C., December 17, 2012 – A study published in the December 2012 issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry found that adolescents who experienced food insecurity in the past year have a higher prevalence of mental disorders than adolescents whose families have reliable access to food.
Using data from the National Comorbidity Survey Replication Adolescent Supplement (NCS-A), a group of researchers led by Dr. Katie McLaughlin, of Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, examined 6,483 adolescents aged 13-17 ...