Nanosensors that detect cancer biomarkers could be used in blood tests that give results in minutes.
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PARIS: Nanosensors that detect traces of cancer in simple blood tests have been successfully developed, U.S. researchers have announced.
A technique developed at Yale University in New Haven, Conneticutt, allows scientists to "detect tiny amounts of cancer biomarkers in a small volume of whole blood in just 20 minutes," according to a report published in the journal Nature Nanotechnology.
The researchers added that their findings could "dramatically simplify the way physicians test for biomarkers of cancer and other diseases."
Results in minutes
Researchers developed a device that acts as a filter and catches cancer biomarkers - in this case for prostate and breast cancers - on a chip while washing away the rest of the blood.
This allows for detection of extremely small concentrations in the order of picograms (a trillionth of a gram) per millilitre of blood, they say.
"This is the equivalent of being able to detect the concentration of a single grain of salt dissolved in a large swimming pool."
Current cancer tests take several days but the new device is able to read out biomarker concentrations in just a few minutes.
"Doctors could have these small, portable devices in their offices and get nearly instant readings," said Tarek Fahmy, one of the leaders of the research team. "They could also carry them into the field and test patients on site."
Nanomaterials deliver medicine
A team of French scientists have meanwhile published in another journal, Nature Materials, their work on using nanomaterial to deliver medicine into the body.
The researchers used crystallised, porous and biodegradable material to hold medicine that could be released into a targeted organ after being injected intravenously, the National Centre for Scientific Research said.
The team had already tested the procedure to deliver medicines to fight AIDS and cancer tumours.
The new materials could also be followed by medical imagery as they travelled to the targeted organ.
