Kristopher Sturgis

August 6, 2014

4 Min Read
'Death Star' Lego Particles: The Latest Ammo in Battle against Cancer

To date the three pillars in the fight against cancer have been surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. All three of those, however, have their drawbacks, which has led some researchers to ask: What if we could equip our bodies with the necessary tools to detect and eliminate cancerous cells long before they multiply and cause problems?

Earlier, we announced that a team of researchers from MIT had developed a lego-block like nanoparticle that can deploy multiple cancer drugs at once. One unique aspect of the research is that the nanoparticles can be programmed to self-assemble in various ways, potentially offering myriad possibilities for delivering drug cocktails to a cancer site.

Warwick

Peter Scott, a professor at the University of Warwick, UK, is working to create  molecules modeled after peptides naturally used by the body to fight off cancer.

A group of scientists from the University of Warwick (UK) have announced they are using a similar Lego-like strategy to fight cancer: create self-assembling peptides that form a 3-D helix shape. "The chemistry involved is like throwing Lego blocks into a bag, giving them a shake, and finding that you made a model of the Death Star," says lead researcher professor Peter Scott. "The design to achieve that takes some thought and computing power, but once you've worked it out the method can be used to make a lot of complicated molecular objects," he explained in a statement.  

The antimicrobial peptides used in the research were inspired by natural peptides found in the human body--small molecular proteins with broad spectrum antimicrobial activity that aid in the fight against bacteria, viruses, and fungi. These evolutionary peptides are still capable of being neutralized as other immune defenses become overwhelmed and outnumbered.

This led Scott to ask: what if we could send the body reinforcements to help turn the fight in our favor? After setting out to discover a method of artificially producing defense molecules that self-generate once they are introduced into the body, Scott has published his findings in an article in Nature Chemistry. In essence, the goal would be to deliver a set of raw materials into the body that come together on the battlefield, forming what is known as peptide-mimetics. These structures can perform like peptides, despite being formed from entirely different materials.

Once the pseudo-peptide is inside the targeted cell, it can then begin to bind with different materials in an effort to ensure the cell's survival. Or, in the case of a cancerous cell, interfere with its ability to reproduce, and begin to destroy the cell from the inside out. The potential impact of peptide-mimetics could be a monumental step toward effectively winning the war against cancer, with many potential benefits still unexplored. However many questions still linger as Scott continues to research the method's effectiveness.

In his paper, Scott says it is still unclear how long these pseudo-peptides can remain in the body before they are eliminated, as their lifespan is quite short. What Scott and his team of researchers are left with is the task of mimicking the bodies antimicrobial peptides from different materials, and finding new ways to extend the life of these molecules so they can carry out their therapeutic duties.

The process requires copious amounts of thought and experimentation, on top of lots and lots of time and money. However Scott believes that once they've worked out the method, it can be used to make a variety of complex molecules. In his paper, Scott explains that these crafted peptides have proven effective against colon cancer cells, as they continue to test them against other cancerous cells and bacteria.

While the study of these pseudo-peptides continues to be a work-in-progress, Scott indicates that their research has begun to produce materials that can crudely match the architecture of the body's natural peptides. Continued research could begin a movement in the direction of an entire new weapon in the fight against cancer, and one that produces far less collateral damage to the body.

Refresh your medical device industry knowledge at MEDevice San Diego, September 10-11, 2014.

Kristopher Sturgis is a contributor to Qmed and MPMN.

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About the Author(s)

Kristopher Sturgis

Kristopher Sturgis is a freelance contributor to MD+DI.

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