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Scorpion Venom With Nanoparticles Halts Brain Cancer Spread

NSF Award:

IGERT: Building Leadership for the Nanotechnology Workforce of Tomorrow  (University of Washington)

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Combining nanoparticles with a chlorotoxin from scorpion venom, scientists at the University of Washington discovered a way to tag brain cancer cells and disable the machinery on the cell's surface, denying the cancer cells the ability to migrate through the brain.

These findings could lead to new conventional drug treatments and have the potential to significantly impact the fight against cancer, particularly aggressive and complicated brain cancers.

The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2011 alone, 22,340 people will be diagnosed with brain cancer and more than 13,000 will die of brain cancer or related problems. The ability to non-surgically halt the growth of brain tumors will be a major victory and will pave the way for treating other types of cancers. 

The researchers use magnetic resonance and optical imaging to identify cells that the chlorotoxin-decorated nanoparticles tag as cancerous (see image, right). The visualization aids neurosurgeons during surgical removal of brain tumors. While conducting this research, the team discovered that nanoparticles and scorpion venom, when combined, halt the spread of brain cancer by disrupting the cancerous cells' movement.

The research was conducted by Omid Veiseh and faculty mentor Miqin Zhang through NSF's Integrative Graduate Education and Traineeship program. The program is intended to establish new models for graduate education and training in a fertile environment for collaborative research that transcends traditional disciplinary boundaries.  It is also intended to facilitate diversity in student participation and preparation, and to contribute to a world-class, broadly inclusive, and globally engaged science and engineering workforce.

Images (1 of )

  • Close-up photo of a black scorpion outside amid sticks and greenery
  • schematic depicting workings of nanprobe
  • microscope image of chlorotoxin-decorated nanoparticles
  • 8 square mini-photos of brain cancer cells after various treatments
Black scorpion
Creative Commons
a) Schematic diagram of chlorotoxin (CTX) attached to a nanoparticle core.
University of Washington courtesy of Professor Miqin Zhang's lab
Transmission electron microscope (TEM) image of chlorotoxin-decorated nanoparticles (identified by arrows) attached to the cell surface, and beginning to be internalized. Scale bar represents 200 nm.
University of Washington courtesy of Professor Miqin Zhang's lab
Tumor cells treated with nanoparticles plus chlorotoxin were the only ones unable to elongate and infiltrate the brain, as shown in the third column. The other columns show cancer cells that are: untreated; treated with chlorotoxin alone; and treated with nanoparticles alone. The top and bottom images of each sample type were acquired from the same cell but with different imaging techniques. The scale bar is equivalent to 20 microns.
University of Washington courtesy of Professor Miqin Zhang's lab

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