Nanoparticle could help map, treat children's brain cancer

Medulloblastoma is the most common cancerous brain tumour in children, and fighting it requires an approach that is delicate, durable and direct. Now, researchers at The University of Queensland’s (UQ) Australian Institute for Bioengineering and Nanotechnology (AIBN) have developed a fluoropolymer-engineered iron oxide nanoparticle that could be used to simultaneously treat, map and monitor the notoriously challenging-to-reach children’s brain cancer.

Medulloblastoma develops at the base of the brain and receives inadvertent protection from the blood–brain barrier, meaning regular treatment methods are often ineffective or cause severe side effects. But AIBN’s Dr Helen Forgham, who helped develop the nanoparticle, said it is the ideal vehicle for delivering small interfering RNA (siRNA) directly to the brain cancer site, slowing tumour growth without causing signs of toxicity. The iron oxide core means the nanoparticles also double as an imaging tool.

“The nanoparticles we have designed are small enough to carry therapeutics through the protective blood–brain barrier, durable enough to make the journey to the tumour and are made from materials that allow them to be picked up by imaging technology,” noted Dr Ruirui Qiao, who also worked on the nanoparticle design.

“What we have is something much more than a drug delivery device. It could change the way we approach the most common cancerous children’s brain tumour.”

Forgham added that any imaging would provide researchers with a closer view of the tumour site, as well as live information on how treatment is progressing.

“It’s a perfect demonstration of chemistry and biology working together — something you don’t often see, but something that was essential to solve a problem with its fair share of natural hurdles,” she said.

Writing in the journal Advanced Science, the researchers described the groundbreaking benefits of their new nanoparticle and why they could be the ideal multifaceted weapon against medulloblastoma. The next step is taking the idea from the lab bench to the clinic.

“The goal is to translate these findings into a product that presents a gentler yet direct approach to treating cancerous tumours,” Forgham said.

“And not just medulloblastoma, but a wider range of cancers.”

Image caption: Here we can see the medulloblastoma cells following the delivery of AF647 siRNA via the new nanoparticle. The cells’ nuclei are shown in blue and the abundance of siRNA in the cytoplasm of cells is shown in red. Photo via AIBN/UQ.