A groundbreaking study by Researchers have made a breakthrough in healthcare industry. The research study found the treatment of cancer by using the disease-destroying abilities of one’s body’s natural killer cells. Natural killer (NK) cells are white blood cells that destroy infected and diseased cells, including cancer cells, by limiting or preventing their spread. The natural killers means that they were ‘born to kill,’ and are able to destroy potential threats in the body without any exposure to a particular pathogen.
The nanodrones of natural killer selectively target a tumor which enables the killing cells to do their work which is Suppressing the growth of cancer cell. It is a new found discovery that helps to develop the tumor-specific immunotherapies for the cancer which is difficult to treat.
When these nanodrones engage human Natural killer cells with the target cancer cells, the Natural killer cells activate itself, and eliminating the cancer cells effectively in a lab setting.
when the lab tested in mice with SK-OV-3 tumors and human PBMCs, HER2, Natural killer nanodrones led to activated human NK cells infiltration into the tumor sites. It resulted in the suppression of the growth of tumour without causing any visible side effects.
When the researchers analyzed the animals histologically, the researchers found that the combination induced specific cell death within the target tumor, leading to significant suppression without any damage to their major organs.
NK cell harnessing nanodrones are engineered proteins which is designed to selectively bind to both NK cells and target cancer cells, placing them in close proximity and promoting destruction of cancer cells mediated by NK. In the recent study, the professors created a nanoscale ‘protein cage’ isolated from the bacterium Aquifex aeolicus (AaLS) as a platform for the targeted operation of NK cell-engaging nanodrones (NKeNDs) that activate the NK cells and subsequently deliver them to specific cancer cells to kill.
The researchers in their study said “Our strategy holds [the] potential to be extended to treat various cancer types by simply switching the cancer-targeting and immune cell-recruiting ligands. It offers the new opportunities for the evolution of recombinant NK cell engagers.”
The research is featured in the respected journal Nano Today on December 2. It received generous amount of support from the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), the Ministry of Science and ICT (MSIT), the SRC Cellular Responses to Metabolic Stress Research Center (CRMSRC), and the University Key Research Institute (C5: Center for Cell to Cell Communication in the Cancer).
By Aafreen Khan