Nature Biotechnology pp 969 - 976

A new imaging technology known as "quantum dots" can be used to search out the location of tumors in living mice, according to a report in the August issue of Nature Biotechnology. If the method can be adapted to people, it should provide a sensitive and non-invasive way of diagnosing cancer.

Quantum dots are tiny crystals that emit bright fluorescence after being exposed to light. The researchers attached quantum dots to antibodies that bind specifically to tumor cells. When the quantum dots were injected into the bloodstream of mice, they homed to the tumors, which could then be detected using a whole-body imaging system.

Nature Biotechnology pp 977 - 984

Researchers in the United Kingdom have shown that tiny, tree-like molecules called dendrimers can reduce scars. In the August issue of Nature Biotechnology, Sunil Shaunak and colleagues show that in eye surgery the administration of dendrimers presenting either a molecule that modulates immune responses or a molecule that suppresses blood vessel growth brings about a marked decrease in surgery-related scar formation. The molecules on these dendrimers are glucosamine, which suppresses the body's immune response, and glucosamine 6-sulfate, which prevents the formation of blood vessels following injury. The net result of using a combination of the two dendrimers is a reduction in inflammation, which leads to minimal scarring and improved healing.

In an animal model, application of both dendrimers to eyes following glaucoma-related eye surgery greatly reduced scar formation and increased the overall success rate of surgery from 30% to 80%. The results indicate that dual glucosamine/glucosamine 6-sulfate dendrimer-based therapeutic approaches may offer new possibilities for treating the systemic inflammatory response syndrome often associated with burns, surgical procedures and bacterial sepsis in humans.