In a joint research of Hubrecht Institute and the University of Basle, Jeroen Bussmann, a chemical biologist of Leiden University found a new methodology to prevent the breakdown of nanoparticles in the liver.
Nanotherapy is the process in which small particles are injected in the specific part of the body to deliver medicines.
But a chronic problem in nanotherapy was that the nanoparticles often used to break down in liver prematurely.
During the research, it was investigated that the endothelial cells and its protein in the blood vessel walls of the liver plays a significant role in Nanotherapy.
The proteins present on the layer of these cells were blocked by giving the zebrafish larvae a long interlinked special molecule. As a result, the nanoparticles remained in the blood stream for a longer duration without being broken down.
The concept adopted was that by using smaller nanoparticles in combination with the special polymer, there will be no more cells in the liver that can remove the nanoparticles.
Using the zebrafish larvae, the scientist also discovered that by extracting the gene for Stabilin-2, it is possible to significantly lower the breakdown of the nanoparticles.
The researchers are further focusing to develop a special molecule that will have a capability to bind cells specifically Stabilin-2. This will help them to restrain the breakdown function of the cells without liver’s natural functionality.
