Nanotechnology has shown great promise in providing timely, precise, and effective healthcare solutions. Previous studies that I have touched base on have shown, how Cancer can be treated effectively employing this tech — the first one involved combining Copper oxide nanoparticles with Immunotherapy to kill Cancer cells and the other one involved a triggering an immune response by using salt nanoparticles. Scientists have accelerated their efforts in the field as is evident from the three recently concluded studies. Let’s review them briefly.

ñanotechnology已在提供及时，准确，有效的医疗保健解决方案表现出极大的承诺。 我之前基于的研究表明，如何使用这项技术可以有效地治疗癌症-第一个涉及将氧化铜纳米粒子与免疫疗法结合以杀死癌细胞，而另一个涉及通过使用盐纳米粒子触发免疫React。 从最近完成的三项研究中可以明显看出，科学家加快了这一领域的努力。 让我们简要地回顾一下它们。

光活化的纳米颗粒使癌细胞饿死 (Light-activated nanoparticles starving Cancer cells)

Let’s start off with research that uses Light-activated nanoparticles to starve cancer cells of essential proteins, they feed on. Researchers at Pennsylvania State University have come up with a potential treatment for cancer by delivering a unique nanoparticle to a localized affected area — the treatment itself is activated via a light exposure.

让我们从使用光激活的纳米颗粒使癌细胞赖以生存的必需蛋白质的饥饿研究开始。 宾夕法尼亚州立大学的研究人员通过将一种独特的纳米粒子传递到局部患处，提出了一种潜在的癌症治疗方法-这种治疗本身是通过光照激活的。

Lead Researcher, Daniel Hayes developed the nanoparticles allowed a microRNA (miRNA) to attach to it. A miRNA is a molecule that when coupled with a messenger RNA (mRNA) prevents it from functioning. In this case, it inhibits the mRNA in a cancer cell from creating proteins, which are essential for that cancer cell to survive.

首席研究员丹尼尔·海斯(Daniel Hayes)开发了可与microRNA(miRNA)结合的纳米颗粒。 miRNA是一种分子，与信使RNA(mRNA)结合后会阻止其发挥作用。 在这种情况下，它抑制癌细胞中的mRNA产生蛋白质，这对于该癌细胞的生存至关重要。

“This delivery method gives you temporal and spatial specificity. Instead of having systemic delivery of a miRNA and the associated side effects, you are able to deliver the miRNA to a specific area of tissue at a specific time by exposing it to light.”

“这种交付方式为您提供时间和空间特异性。 通过将miRNA暴露在光下，您可以在特定的时间将miRNA传递到特定的组织区域，而不必进行miRNA的系统传递和相关的副作用。”

~ Adam Glick, Study Author

〜研究作者Adam Glick

In the animal trials conducted, the team delivered nanoparticles to the cancer cells of mice through an IV. Once the nanoparticles built up in the cancer-affected area, they separated the miRNA from the nanoparticles by using a specific wavelength of light. This caused the skin tumors in a group of around 20 mice to completely recede within 24 to 48 hours, while not allowing the tumors to regrow.

在进行的动物试验中，研究小组通过静脉输液将纳米颗粒递送至小鼠的癌细胞。 一旦纳米颗粒在受癌症影响的区域中堆积，它们就会通过使用特定波长的光将miRNA与纳米颗粒分离。 这导致大约20只小鼠的皮肤肿瘤在24至48小时内完全消退，而不允许肿瘤再生。

Complete Research was published in the Journal Biomaterials.

完整的研究发表在《 生物材料 》杂志上。

基于纳米粒子的视网膜可恢复视力 (Nanoparticle-based Retina restores Vision)

While researchers have taken strides in using technology to replace biological eyesight with bionic vision, an international team of researchers has developed a new nanoparticle-based artificial retina prosthesis that can be injected into the eye. This could be a huge step forward in treating Degenerative age-related vision loss, which is so common.

尽管研究人员在使用技术替代仿生视力方面取得了长足的进步，但一个国际研究人员团队已经开发了一种新的基于纳米颗粒的人工视网膜假体，可以将其注入眼睛。 这可能是治疗退行性年龄相关性视力丧失的重要一步，这种现象非常普遍。

While most consider this a natural process that comes with age, this new innovative approach might prevent, or at least slow, this seemingly inevitable process. The study entailed the use of conjugated polymer nanoparticles (P3HT-NP) that can potentially spread broadly across the sub-retinal space and restore lost vision.

尽管大多数人认为这是随着年龄增长而来的自然过程，但这种新的创新方法可能会阻止或至少是缓慢的解决这一看来不可避免的过程。 该研究需要使用共轭聚合物纳米粒子 (P3HT-NP)，该纳米粒子可能会广泛散布在整个视网膜下空间并恢复视力丧失。

“In the model we studied, the nanoparticles stimulated the light-dependent activation of the intact internal retinal neurons, recovering visual responses with no inflammation of the retina.”

“在我们研究的模型中，纳米颗粒刺激了完整的内部视网膜神经元的光依赖性激活，恢复了视觉React，而视网膜没有发炎。”

~ Mattia Bramini, Researcher

〜Mattia Bramini，研究员

Researchers conducted the trials on rodents to test the efficacy and safety of these nanoparticles. After administering just one sub-retinal injection of the experimental nanoparticles, the researchers saw visual cortex activity and visual acuity of the rodents return to that of animals with healthy vision. They also noted that the way the nanoparticles dispersed across the retina suggests the technology can restore a wide field of vision.

研究人员在啮齿动物上进行了试验，以测试这些纳米颗粒的功效和安全性。 在只进行了视网膜纳米颗粒的一次视网膜注射后，研究人员发现啮齿动物的视觉皮层活动和视敏度恢复为具有健康视力的动物的视敏度。 他们还指出，纳米粒子散布在视网膜上的方式表明该技术可以恢复广阔的视野。

Complete Research was published in the Journal Nature Nanotechnology.

完整的研究发表在《 自然纳米技术 》杂志上 。

纳米涂层的红细胞可有效递送疫苗 (Nanoparticle-coated RBCs for effective Vaccine delivery)

One of the biggest problems that scientists have to encounter is the effective deployment of a vaccine. It is a big topic of discussion these days with the upcoming vaccines for COVID-19. In a breakthrough study, Harvard researchers have developed a vaccine platform that uses red blood cells (RBCs) to generate targeted immune responses.

科学家必须遇到的最大问题之一是疫苗的有效部署。 这些天来，即将到来的COVID-19疫苗已成为讨论的重要话题。 在一项突破性研究中，哈佛大学的研究人员开发了一种疫苗平台 ，该平台使用红细胞(RBC)产生针对性的免疫React。

Researchers at Harvard’s Wyss Institute built on the premise that red blood cells can carry other payloads, like antibodies & drugs, apart from oxygen from the lungs to the rest of the body. The new system dubbed as the new system, named Erythrocyte-Driven Immune Targeting (EDIT) explores a secondary function of RBCs — carrying neutralized pathogens to the spleen, where they are passed onto antigen-presenting cells (APCs).

哈佛大学怀斯研究所的研究人员建立在这样一个前提下，即红细胞可以携带其他有效载荷，例如抗体和药物，除了从肺部到身体其他部位的氧气。 被称为新系统的新系统称为红细胞驱动的免疫靶向(EDIT)，它探索RBC的第二功能-将中和的病原体带入脾脏，然后将它们传递给抗原呈递细胞(APC)。

“[Red blood cells’] ability to enhance immune responses could make them a safe alternative to foreign adjuvants, increasing the efficacy of vaccines and speed of vaccine creation.”

“ [红细胞]增强免疫React的能力可以使其成为外来佐剂的安全替代品，从而提高疫苗的效力和疫苗生产的速度。”

~ Zongmin Zhao, Co-First Author

〜赵宗敏，第一作者

To make sure that the payload is not lost when the red blood cells squeeze through narrow capillaries in the lungs, researchers used nanoparticles that were made of polystyrene, and coated with an antigenic protein called ovalbumin. A lipid molecule called phosphatidylserine (PS) had to be present in just the right amounts as well — too much of it would cause the spleen to identify the cells as damaged and destroy them.

为了确保当红血球穿过肺部狭窄的毛细血管时不会丢失有效载荷，研究人员使用了由聚苯乙烯制成的纳米颗粒，并涂有称为卵清蛋白的抗原蛋白。 还必须以正确的数量存在一种称为磷脂酰丝氨酸(PS)的脂质分子-过多的脂质会导致脾脏识别出受损的细胞并破坏它们。

The trial runs were conducted on mice — where their RBCs were incubated with antigen-loaded nanoparticles, with a ratio of about 300 nanoparticles to one red blood cell to ensure that at least 80% stuck to the RBCs surface. It took about 20 minutes to clear all the nanoparticle coated RBCs to move from the lungs to the spleen, which remained there after 24 hours of the injection.

试验在小鼠身上进行，小鼠的RBC与载有抗原的纳米颗粒一起孵育，纳米颗粒与一个红细胞的比例约为300，以确保至少80％的纳米颗粒粘附在RBC表面。 清除所有纳米颗粒涂层的RBC从肺部转移到脾脏大约需要20分钟，在注射24小时后，脾脏仍保留在那里。

The amount of EDIT red blood cells in the body also remained consistent confirming they were not being destroyed by the spleen. More antibodies against ovalbumin were also found in the blood of the EDIT mice than the others. The team says that the novel technique could be used as a new delivery system for vaccines targeting a range of infections and illnesses.

体内编辑红细胞的数量也保持一致，证实它们没有被脾脏破坏。 在EDIT小鼠的血液中也发现了更多的针对卵白蛋白的抗体。 研究小组说，这项新技术可以用作针对多种感染和疾病的疫苗的新型输送系统。

Complete Research was published in the Journal PNAS.

完整的研究发表在PNAS杂志上。

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