Tiny Magnets Provide Breakthrough in Gene Therapy for Cancer

A groundbreaking cancer treatment using microscopic magnets to enable ‘armed' human cells to target tumors has been developed. A new study shows that inserting these nanomagnets into cells carrying genes to combat tumors, results in many more cells effectively reaching and invading cancerous tumors.

Using human cells as delivery vehicles for anticancer gene therapy has long been an appealing approach for treating tumors, but these cells typically reach tumors in insufficient numbers to effectively attack them. Now, a new ‘magnetic targeting' method has been developed to overcome this problem by Prof. Claire Lewis from the University of Sheffield (UK), Prof. Jon Dobson from the Keele University (UK), and Prof. Helen Byrne and Dr. Giles Richardson from the University of Nottingham (UK).

The technique involves inserting nanomagents into monocytes--a type of white blood cell used to carry gene therapy--and injecting the cells into the bloodstream. The researchers then placed a small magnet over the tumor to create a magnetic field and found that this attracted many more monocytes into the tumor.

The head of the laboratory in which the study was performed, Prof. Lewis, explained, "The use of nanoparticles to enhance the uptake of therapeutically armed cells by tumors could herald a new era in gene therapy--one in which delivery of the gene therapy vector to the diseased site is much more effective. This new technique could also be used to help deliver therapeutic genes in other diseases like arthritic joints or ischemic heart tissue.”

Prof. Dobson said, "Though the concept of magnetic targeting for drug and gene delivery has been around for decades, major technical hurdles have prevented its translation into a clinical therapy. By harnessing and enhancing the monocytes' innate targeting abilities, this technique offers great potential to overcome some of these barriers and bring the technology closer to the clinic.”

Prof. Nigel Brown, Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC; Swindon, UK) director of science and technology, said, "This exciting work could have huge implications in healthcare. Fundamental bioscience research may sometimes seem to have little relevance to everyday life, but understanding the basic workings of the human body and harnessing nanoscale technology has resulted in a process of great potential in tumor therapy.”

The team of researchers is now looking at how effective magnetic targeting is at delivering a variety of different cancer-fighting genes, including ones which could halt the spread of tumors to other areas of the body.

This research was published online in the journal Gene Therapy April 17, 2008.


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University of Sheffield
Keele University
University of Nottingham