Iranian researchers from Tehran University of Medical Sciences studied the possibility of application of nanotechnology in targeted drug delivery systems to treat cancer.
This research studied the production of a nanodrug and its effects on the treatment of breast cancer.
The aim of the researchers was to present curcumin nanodrug with a slow and effective release pattern to heal breast cancer. Curcumin is a drug with anti-cancer and anti-inflammation properties. The drug is usually used orally or peripherally.
Silica porous nanoparticles were used in this research as the drug carrier to produce the desired nanodrug system. Among the important effects of the nanodrug on the treatment of cancer, mention can be made of reducing therapeutic costs and the side effects.
Silica nanoparticles are biodegradable and non-toxic, although they have many chemical abilities to be used in the designing of drug delivery nanosystems.
Silica porous nanoparticles were firstly designed and synthesized in this research. The nanoparticles were modified by polyethylene glycol and other organic functional groups, and then they were characterized. In the end, curcumin was loaded in the nanoparticles.
Results of the research have been published in European Journal of Medicinal Chemistry, vol. 83, issue 1, 2014, pp. 646-654.