When it comes to cancer treatment and nanoparticles, the preference has been to use gold nanoparticles. Silicon nanoparticles, on the other hand, have been limited mainly to the realm of electronics applications.

Now researchers at Lomonosov Moscow State University and the Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology in Germany have demonstrated that silicon nanoparticles can be applied to the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. The researchers claim that this work represents the first time nanoparticles have penetrated into diseased cells and completely dissolved after delivering their cancer treatment drug payload.

The research represents another step in the field of so-called theranostics, in which a diagnostic tool is combined with a therapy tool to treat disease. While many of these theranostic techniques have involved nanoparticles, the problem with metal nanoparticles is that they present biocompatibility issues. Despite delivering drugs accurately to a target such as a group of cancer cells and providing fast action,…[Read more]