One of the thing that stops progress to its full expansion, is some time the secrecy that researchers keep around really exciting things happening today in order to reveal only when things are ripe and ready for a "big" disclosure! Also, the sense that we own technology and fight hands and teeth to keep findings that can save life for ourselves so we can rip the most profits. It is just a shame that technology brought about by Taxpayers through NIH is bundle up in a patent. We are still seeing the unfolding the BRCA fight which is still going on. We just hope that people will come to their sense and free progress in technology for the good of the world!
One thing excited going on in New York is this development of Nanotechnology, it is my understanding that the State gave money and several biotech companies are now pitching in to possess and develop further this area of science, so that the benefit reach us all in time, at least we hope! In this world of greed, we still should expect another round of fight over this technology! Brace for it!
One of the way this technology will make a significant difference is the improved specific delivery of potent chemotherapy drugs to specific area of certain cells! This is a major problem in Oncology since lack of control where the chemotherapy goes lead to devastating and uncontrolled side effects! It's like a smart Bomb versus a dumb bomb! This is target therapy at its best.
Researchers are targeting tough cancers with this technology. (ie melanoma, sarcoma and Pancreatic cancers).
The miRNA-708 story stands out in my mind! That story reported that there is in triple negative breast cancer this miRNA 708 that inhibit Metastatic lesions from Breast cancer. And because it is a suppressor "gene" for Metastatic breast cancer, it is its lack or deficiency that leads to promotion of metastasis. The reports suggested that increasing delivery of synthetic genes could restore the inhibition of Metastasis, and Nanotechnology could come to the rescue as a transport of gene here to help us fight advanced Breast cancer.
The story is even bigger when you think back about the implications of better controlling this technology!
It is increasingly recognized that some if not most, are caused by a gene suppression! PTEN, E-Cadherin, P53, Rb1 to name just a few...One of the toughest thing is restoring a gene level! Creating a inhibitor is the stuff we know how to do. We have all kinds of inhibitors But gene reamplification and activity restoration is a challenge. NANOTECHNOLOGY will come to the rescue, that is if we have the gene to restore ready for delivery. Other way to restore is by regulating the gene promoter, or through Liposomes (lamelle technology and E-coli-mechanistic ways!) Never mind these, nanotechnology is the new way, and it is hugely promising! (Lawyers, brace yourselves!)
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