Category Archives: Nano Medicine

There is also a possibility that the project could get a three-year renewal.

Coronavirus treatment: New drug to mitigate or prevent coronavirus infection may have been found! Researchers from the University of Malaga (UMA) and the Andalusian Centre for Nanomedicine and Biotechnology (BIONAND) have been making progress in the identification of new therapies that can be implemented rapidly and can combat COVID-19. They have now found a potential drug to prevent or mitigate the consequences of an infection caused by SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that has caused a global pandemic. The first results of the study have been published in Cytokine and Growth Factors Review journal and have been accessed by Financial Express Online.

The research is being led by principal researchers Fabiana Csukasi and Ivn Durn, and over the coming year, the team would be studying the impact of 4-Phenylbutiric acid (4-PBA) treatment in modulating the inflammatory response that is produced in severe COVID-19 cases. This inflammatory response can lead to excessive and uncontrolled release of cytokines, which are the molecules responsible for the organisation of the bodys defence. This uncontrolled release can cause severe reactions, going as far as triggering vascular hyperpermeability and muti-organ failure. The researchers have proposed controlling this cytokine storm through the help of the infected cells.

Durn said that when the cells are under stress due to the infection, they trigger the release of cytokines, and as the stress level increases, the call for cytokine also increases, leading to this storm. Therefore, Durn said that one possible treatment for this is reducing the stress on cells.

The researcher added that repurposing of 4-PBA, an anti-stress drug, could help in modulating the cellular stress. The drug has been approved for clinical usage in other diseases, and therefore, it should not be hard to apply for repurposing it in terms of COVID-19. Another important point to note is that cellular stress is also present in cases of aging, carcinogenesis or diabetes, all of which are comorbidities flagged as risk factors for COVID-19.

Durn said that the preliminary research was conducted on animal models and the results from the study have shown that mortality caused by cellular stress-induced respiratory failure was completely curbed by 4-PBA. The researcher added that the results also helped in the identification of Binding Immunoglobulin Protein (BiP), a marker of stress blood, as an indicator of situations of cellular stress. This could be explored and measured in affected patients.

The UMA professor said that this could mean that BiP levels could determine the efficacy of 4-PBA treatment as well as be an early indicator of the COVID-19 risk groups. Thus, it could help in the establishment of a correlation between high stress levels and the severity of the inflammation after the infection.

The researcher added that people with comorbidities have cellular stress in the first place, and an infection of coronavirus could make them more prone to fall severely ill or even die. Thus, if the status of a patients cellular stress became known, then healthcare workers would be able to detect their susceptibility before they get infected and also know how to treat them in time.

The study has been financed by the Government of Andalusias COVID-19 Fund and the initial grant has been to the tune of EUR 90,000. There is also a possibility that the project could get a three-year renewal.

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Great news! Potential COVID-19 drug to mitigate the consequences of coronavirus infection identified - The Financial Express

PLAM BEACH, Fla., Sept. 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ --The National Institute for Health (NIH) is at the heart of the emerging and rapidly evolving war against the global pandemic. They constantly update the public on the latest information on research for a vaccine and therapies to fight the virus. A recent report from them shone the light on a specific promising therapeutic approach nanomedicine. The NIH said that nanomedicine is a promising approach fordiagnosis, treatment and prophylaxis against COVID-19. They said that: "The COVID-19pandemic caused by the newly emerged severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) puts the world in an unprecedented crisis, leaving behind huge human losses and deep socioeconomic damages. Due to the lack of specific treatment against SARS-CoV-2, effective vaccines and antiviral agents are urgently needed to properly restrain the COVID-19 pandemic. Repositioned drugs such asremdesivir have revealed a promising clinical efficacy against COVID-19. Interestingly, nanomedicine as a promising therapeutic approach could effectively help win the battle between coronaviruses and host cells."Mentioned in today's commentary include: NanoViricides, Inc. (NYSE: NNVC), Immunomedics(NASDAQ: IMMU), Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD), Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (NASDAQ: INO), Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX).

Due to a lack of approved vaccines and specific treatments only preventive measures can currently be applied. Currently, development of an effective vaccine and specific treatment is the main concern for researchers worldwide to fight the current COVID-19 and any future mutations. Understanding the coronaviral genome and the processes of viral replication and pathogenesis will enable researchers to develop specific drugs and vaccines. So researchers are turning to nanomedicine, one of the most important and emerging fields of modern science.

NanoViricides, Inc. (NYSE American: NNVC) Breaking News: NanoViricides Nominates a Novel Candidate for Advancing Into Clinical Trials for Treatment of COVID-19 NanoViricides, a global leader in the development of highly effective antiviral therapies based on a novel nanomedicines platform, today announced that it has nominated a clinical drug candidate for the treatment of COVID-19, thus further advancing its COVID-19 program closer to human clinical trials.

The Company has accelerated its drug development program for COVID-19 with the goal of creating the most effective medicine to obtain regulatory approval for emergency use in the COVID-19 pandemic in the shortest timeline feasible, after achieving proof of concept of broad-spectrum anti-coronavirus effectiveness of test candidates. The Company therefore aggressively worked to harness the full power of the nanoviricides nanomedicine platform to achieve these objectives.

A curative treatment for a virus such as SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus would require a multi-faceted attack that shuts down (i) ability of the virus to infect host cells and simultaneously, (ii) ability of the virus to multiply inside the host cells. The nanoviricide platform enables direct multi-point attack on the virus that is designed to disable the virus and its ability to infect new cells. At the same time, a nanoviricide is also capable of carrying payload in its "belly" (inside the micelle) that can be chosen to affect the ability of the virus to replicate. The nanoviricide is designed to protect the payload from metabolism in circulation. Thus, the nanoviricide platform provides an important opportunity to develop a curative treatment against SARS-CoV-2, the cause of COVID-19 spectrum of pathologies.

The clinical candidate the Company has chosen is identified as NV-CoV-1-R. It is made up of a nanoviricide that we have found to possess broad-spectrum anti-coronavirus activity, now identified as NV-CoV-1, and remdesivir encapsulated inside the core of NV-CoV-1. NV-CoV-1 itself is designed to attack the virus particles themselves, and possibly would also attack infected cells that display the virus antigen S-protein, while sparing normal (uninfected) cells that do not display the S-protein. Additionally, remdesivir is widely understood to attack the replication cycle of the virus inside cells. Thus the combined attack enabled by NV-CoV-1-R on the virus could prove to be a cure for the infection and the disease, provided that the necessary dosage level can be attained without undue adverse effects. Human clinical trials will be required to determine the safety and effectiveness of NV-CoV-1-R.

Remdesivir is a well-known antiviral drug (developed by Gilead) that has been approved for emergency use treatment of SARS-CoV-2 infection or COVID-19 in several countries. NV-CoV-1 is a novel agent that is being used as an adjuvant to remdesivir in creating NV-CoV-1-R, to improve the overall effectiveness. It is well known that remdesivir suffers from rapid metabolism in circulation that breaks down the prodrug to its nucleoside form which is not readily phosphorylated. The Company anticipates that encapsulation in NV-CoV-1 may protect remdesivir from this rapid metabolism. If this happens, the effective level and stability of remdesivir in the body would increase. This increase may lead to increased effectiveness if there are no adverse effects. Such increased effectiveness, if found, may also allow reduction in the required dosage of remdesivir in the encapsulated form, i.e. as NV-CoV-1-R. In this sense, NV-CoV-1 can be viewed to act as an adjuvant that enhances the effect of remdesivir, a known antiviral against SARS-CoV-2.

"This is an extremely important milestone for the Company," said Anil R. Diwan, PhD, President and Executive Chairman of the Company, adding, "We look forward to rapid development of the IND enabling core safety pharmacology studies and, thereafter, human clinical development on an accelerated timeline in these trying times of the pandemic." Read the full press release by going to: http://www.nanoviricides.com/companynews.html

In other biotech news in the markets this week:

Immunomedics(NASDAQ: IMMU) and Gilead Sciences, Inc. (NASDAQ: GILD)recently announcedthat the companies have entered into a definitive agreement pursuant to which Gilead will acquire Immunomedics for $88.00 per share in cash. The transaction, which values Immunomedics at approximately $21 billion, was unanimously approved by both the Gilead and Immunomedics Boards of Directors and is anticipated to close during the fourth quarter of 2020.

The agreement will provide Gilead with TrodelvyTM(sacituzumab govitecan-hziy), a first-in-class Trop-2 directed antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) that was granted accelerated approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in April for the treatment of adult patients with metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC) who have received at least two prior therapies for metastatic disease. Immunomedics plans to submit a supplemental Biologics License Application (BLA) to support full approval of Trodelvy in the United States in the fourth quarter of 2020. Immunomedics is also on track to file for regulatory approval in Europe in the first half of 2021.

"This acquisition represents significant progress in Gilead's work to build a strong and diverse oncology portfolio. Trodelvy is an approved, transformational medicine for a form of cancer that is particularly challenging to treat. We will now continue to explore its potential to treat many other types of cancer, both as a monotherapy and in combination with other treatments," said Daniel O'Day, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Gilead Sciences. "We look forward to welcoming the talented Immunomedics team to Gilead so we can continue to advance this important new medicine for the benefit of patients with cancer worldwide."

INOVIO (NASDAQ: INO), a biotechnology company focused on bringing to market precisely designed DNA medicines to treat and protect people from infectious diseases and cancer, recently announced that Thermo Fisher Scientific, the world leader in serving science, has signed a letter of intent to manufacture INOVIO's DNA COVID-19 vaccine candidate INO-4800.

Thermo Fisherjoins other contract development and manufacturing organizations in INOVIO's global manufacturing consortium, enabling INOVIO to potentially scale commercial production of INO-4800. With its consortium of third-party manufacturers, INOVIO plans to have 1001million doses of INO-4800 manufactured in 2021, subject to FDA approval of INO-4800 for use as a COVID-19 vaccine.Thermo Fisherplans to manufacture INO-4800 drug substance as well as perform fill and finish of INO-4800 drug product at its commercial facilities in the US. At peak capacity,Thermo Fisherprojects that it could produce at least 100 million doses of INO-4800 annually.

Novavax, Inc. (NASDAQ: NVAX), a late-stage biotechnology company developing next-generation vaccines for serious infectious diseases, recently announced an amendment to its existing agreement with Serum Institute of India Private Limited (SIIPL) under which SIIPL will also manufacture the antigen component of NVXCoV2373, Novavax' COVID19 vaccine candidate. With this agreement, Novavax increases its manufacturing capacity of NVX-CoV2373 to overtwo billion doses annually, when all planned capacity has been brought online by mid-2021. NVXCoV2373 is a stable, prefusion protein made using Novavax' recombinant protein nanoparticle technology and includes Novavax' proprietary MatrixM adjuvant.

"Today's agreement with Serum Institute enhances Novavax' commitment to equitable global delivery of our COVID-19 vaccine. With this arrangement, we have now put in place a global supply chain that includes the recently acquired Praha Vaccines and partnerships with leading biologics manufacturers, enabling production on three continents," said Stanley C. Erck, President and Chief Executive Officer of Novavax. "We continue to work with extraordinary urgency to develop our vaccine, now in Phase 2 clinical trials, and for which we anticipate starting Phase 3 efficacy trials around the world in the coming weeks."

DISCLAIMER: FN Media Group LLC (FNM), which owns and operates Financialnewsmedia.com and MarketNewsUpdates.com, is a third- party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels.FNM is NOT affiliated in any manner with any company mentioned herein. FNM and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security.FNM's market updates, news alerts and corporate profiles are NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities. The material in this release is intended to be strictly informational and is NEVER to be construed or interpreted as research material.All readers are strongly urged to perform research and due diligence on their own and consult a licensed financial professional before considering any level of investing in stocks. All material included herein is republished content and details which were previously disseminated by the companies mentioned in this release.FNM is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers. Investors are cautioned that they may lose all or a portion of their investment when investing in stocks. For current services performed FNM was compensated twenty five hundred dollars for news coverage of current press release issued by NanoViricides, Inc. by a non-affiliated third party.FNM HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.

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Nanomedicine Seen As A Promising Approach For Diagnosis and Treatment Against COVID - PRNewswire

Healthcare Nanotechnology Market2020-2025 report offerscomprehensive quantitative and qualitative market analysis. This report has been prepared under the continuous observation of the global market situation. This report has been formulated to give our clients the most up to date data and analyses of the Healthcare Nanotechnology Market. The impact on the enterprises and business development, distribution by region and global level is assessed in the report.

Top Companies are covering This Report:-

AmgenStrykerTeva PharmaceuticalsUCBRocheAbbottMerck & CoCelgeneBiogenSanofiLeadiant BiosciencesShireKyowa Hakko KirinGilead SciencesJohnson & Johnson3M CompanyEndo InternationalSmith & NephewPfizerIpsen

The research process involved the study of various factors affecting the industry such as government policy, market environment, competitive landscape, historical data, existing trends in the market, and market risks, opportunities, market barriers and challenges.

Reports Intellect projects Healthcare Nanotechnology Market based on elite players, present, past, and forecast data for the coming years which will act as a profitable guide for all the market competitors. The study includes growth trends, micro- economic and macro-economic indicators in detail and the report has been assessed with the help of PESTEL analysis and other essential analyses operating in the Healthcare Nanotechnology Market. Top-down and bottom-up approaches are used to validate the global Healthcare Nanotechnology market size and estimate the market size for Company, regions segments, product segments and Application.

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The report offers all the essential data for players to secure a position of strength in the market, all while creating a comprehensive action plan. Our analysts here at Reports Intellect have used advanced primary and secondary research techniques to create the most up to date assessment of data on the Healthcare Nanotechnology Market which opens up a plethora of new opportunities to create new strategies to gain leverage over the competition.

Type Coverage:

NanomedicineNano Medical DevicesNano DiagnosisOthersNanomedicine has the highest percentage of revenue by type, with more than 86% in 2019.

Application Coverage:

AnticancerCNS ProductAnti-infectiveOthersAccording to the application, anticancer and CNS products accounted for 17.56% and 22.70% of the market in 2019 respectively.

Market Segment by Regions, regional analysis covers

North America Country (United States, Canada)

South America

Asia Country (China, Japan, India, Korea)

Europe Country (Germany, UK, France, Italy)

Other Country (Middle East, Africa, GCC)

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Healthcare Nanotechnology Market Insights Competitive Analysis and Future Demand and Revenue Forecast to 2024 | Key Companies: Amgen, Stryker, Teva...

A detailed overview of Medical Biomimetics market with respect to the pivotal drivers influencing the revenue graph of this business sphere. The current trends of Medical Biomimetics market in conjunction with the geographical landscape, demand spectrum, remuneration scale, and growth graph of this vertical have also been included in this report.

Increasing rate of organ failure coupled with growing geriatric population base will act as growth impact rendering factors for medical biomimetics market during the forecast timeframe. As per the U.S. Census Bureau?s 2017 National Population Projections, there will be nearly 78 million people aged more than 65 years, while 76.7 million under 18 years of age in the U.S. by 2035, thereby escalating demand for biomimetics products in coming future.

High adoption of western culture, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity has led to rising incidence of cardiovascular diseases, resulting in increased demand for biomimetic cardiovascular products. Numerous applications of biomimetics in healthcare industry including fields such as dentistry, orthopedics, cardiovascular, and ophthalmology should stimulate business growth during the analysis period.

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Medical Biomimetics Market will reach over USD 35 billion by 2025; as per a new research report.

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Orthopedic product segment accounted for more than 30% market share in 2018 and is estimated to witness significant growth during the forecast period owing to growing demand for orthopedic prosthesis and implants. For instance, increasing number of accidents and injuries have escalated the demand for prosthetic limbs. Technological advancements including development of augment bone graft should positively impact segmental growth.

Application segment of medical biomimetics market includes plastic surgery, wound healing, tissue engineering, drug delivery and others including nanomedicine, drug discovery, enzymatic modification and medical engineering. Plastic surgery application segment will witness 6.3% CAGR over the coming years due to wide application of biomimetics in plastic surgery for scaffold formation. It is also used in craniofacial surgery for restoration of facial aesthetics, function and form.

Increasing R&D activities pertaining to development of innovative biomimetic products along with advancements in nanotechnology, tissue engineering utilizing biomimetics technology should positively impact industry expansion. However, high capital investment in R&D along with stringent regulations will hinder industry growth during the forecast timeframe.

Germany medical biomimetics market dominated European region in 2018 and is anticipated to grow at 5.8% during the forecast period. High technological adoption, rising geriatric population prone to suffer from organ failure and increasing incidence of ophthalmology, orthopedic and cardiovascular disorders in the country are driving factors for Germany medical biomimetics market.

Saudi Arabia medical biomimetics market will witness 5.2% CAGR during the forecast timeframe. Growing demand and adoption of cosmetic surgical procedures among women, technological advancements and rising awareness should drive Saudi Arabia medical biomimetics industry during the analysis period. Rising incidence of coronary heart disease coupled with growing uptake of unhealthy habits such as alcohol consumption and tobacco smoking will augment demand for biomimetic products in the region.

Major Highlights from Table of contents are listed below for quick lookup into Medical Biomimetics Market report

Chapter 1. Competitive Landscape

Chapter 2. Company Profiles

Chapter 3. Methodology & Scope

Chapter 4. Executive Summary

Chapter 5. Medical Biomimetics industryInsights

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Medical Biomimetics Market research, Industry Outlook, Current Trends and Forecast by 2025 - The Research Process

KANAZAWA, Japan, Sept. 16, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Researchers at Kanazawa University report in Nature Communications the mechanism making some lung-cancer patients resistant to the drug osimertinib. In addition, they suggest a combined drug treatment resolving osimertinib resistance in the case of cancer cells expressing low amounts of AXL, a protein belonging to the class of receptor tyrosine kinases.

The effectiveness of cancer treatment is often hampered by cancer cells being heterogeneous. This is the case for EGFR-mutated lung cancer: drugs based on biomolecules of a type known as tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) have been used to treat the disease, but with various levels of efficacy. (EGFR stands for "epidermal growth factor receptor", a protein playing an important role in signaling processes from the extracellular environment to a cell.) Sometimes, tumor cells are simply resistant to the drug. Now, Seiji Yano from Kanazawa University and colleagues have investigated the efficacy of the TKI osimertinib for treating EGFR-mutated lung cancer, and how it relates to the expression in tumor cells of a particular protein called AXL. They found that both AXL-high and -low expressing tumor cells showed tolerance (acquired resistance) to osimertinib, but that the mechanisms involved are different for the two situations. Moreover, the researchers suggest a way to enhance the success of osimertinib treatment for the case of AXL-low expressing tumors.

First, the scientists compared the susceptibility to osimertinib in both AXL-high and -low expressing tumor cells in in vitro experiments. They observed that osimertinib inhibited the viability of the cancer cells in both cases, but that the sensitivity to the drug was higher for AXL-low expressing EGFR-mutated lung cancer cells.They also noticed that a small number of tumor cells survived the procedure an indication of osimertinib tolerance.These findings were consistent with results from the clinical study of the drug performed earlier on 29 patients with EGFR-mutated non-small cell lung cancer.

Through experiments aiming to understand the mechanism behind osimertinib tolerance, Yano and colleagues discovered that phosphorylation of IGF-1R was increased in AXL-low-expressing tumor cell lines, but not in AXL-high expressing tumors. (IGF-1R stands for 'insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor'; it is a protein located on the surface of human cells. Phosphorylation is the chemical process of adding a phosphoryl group.) The researchers then found that phosphorylated IGF-1R supported the survival of AXL-low expressing tumors after exposure to osimertinib.

The scientists then tested whether the observed osimertinib resistance could be resolved by administering linsitinib, a substance known to inhibit the phosphorylation of IGF-1R. Encouraged by the positive outcome of the experiment, Yano and colleagues went further and evaluated the combination of osimertinib and linsitinib. Their conclusion was that the transient combination of linsitinib with continuous osimertinib treatment could cure or at least dramatically delay tumor recurrence in AXL-low-expressing EGFR-mutated lung cancer. More investigating needs to be done, though. Quoting the researchers: " the safety and efficacy of the transient combination of IGF-1R inhibitor and osimertinib should be evaluated in the clinical trials."

Background

Tyrosine kinase inhibitors

A tyrosine kinase inhibitor is a drug inhibiting (that is, preventing or reducing the activity of) a specific tyrosine kinase. A tyrosine kinase is a protein (enzyme) involved in the activation of other proteins by signaling cascades. The activation happens by the addition of a phosphate group to the protein (phosphorylation); it is this step that a tyrosine kinase inhibitor inhibits. Tyrosine kinase inhibitors are used as anticancer drugs. One such drug is osimertinib, used to treat EGFR-mutated lung cancer.

AXL

AXL is a receptor tyrosine kinase a tyrosine kinase consisting of an extracellular part, a transmembrane part ('sitting' within a cell membrane) and an intracellular part. AXL regulates various important cellular processes, including proliferation, survival and motility.

In recent years, it has become clear that AXL is a key facilitator of drug tolerance by cancer cells. Seiji Yano from Kanazawa University and colleagues have found that this is also the case for EGFR-mutated lung cancer. While a high expression of AXL correlates with resistance to osimertinib, such tolerance also occurs in AXL-low-expressing cancer cells. Yano and colleagues have now found that for the latter case, phosphorylation of IGF-1R (insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor) is responsible for the resistance to osimertinib.

Reference

Rong Wang, Tadaaki Yamada, Kenji Kita, Hirokazu Taniguchi, Sachiko Arai, Koji Fukuda, Minoru Terashima, Akihiko Ishimura, Akihiro Nishiyama, Azusa Tanimoto, Shinji Takeuchi, Koshiro Ohtsubo, Kaname Yamashita, Tomoyoshi Yamano, Akihiro Yoshimura, Koichi Takayama, Kyoichi Kaira, Yoshihiko Taniguchi, Shinji Atagi, Hisanori Uehara, Rikinari Hanayama, Isao Matsumoto, Xujun Han, Kunio Matsumoto, Wei Wang, Takeshi Suzuki, and Seiji Yano. Transient IGF-1R inhibition combined with osimertinib eradicates AXL-low expressing EGFR mutated lung cancer, Nature Communications 11, XX(2020).

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-18442-4

URL: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-020-18442-4

Link to figure https://nanolsi.kanazawa-u.ac.jp/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/Figure-768x567.png

Figure CaptionMechanism of targeted drugs tolerance in lung cancer cells

Further information

About WPI NanoLSI Kanazawa University Hiroe YonedaVice Director of Public AffairsWPI Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI)Kanazawa UniversityKakuma-machi, Kanazawa 920-1192, JapanEmail: nanolsi-office@adm.kanazawa-u.ac.jpTel: +81 (76) 234-4550

About Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) https://nanolsi.kanazawa-u.ac.jp/en/

Nano Life Science Institute (NanoLSI), Kanazawa University is a research center established in 2017 as part of the World Premier International Research Center Initiative of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The objective of this initiative is to form world-tier research centers. NanoLSI combines the foremost knowledge of bio-scanning probe microscopy to establish 'nano-endoscopic techniques' to directly image, analyze, and manipulate biomolecules for insights into mechanisms governing life phenomena such as diseases.

About Kanazawa Universityhttp://www.kanazawa-u.ac.jp/e/

As the leading comprehensive university on the Sea of Japan coast, Kanazawa University has contributed greatly to higher education and academic research in Japan since it was founded in 1949. The University has three colleges and 17 schools offering courses in subjects that include medicine, computer engineering, and humanities.

The University is located on the coast of the Sea of Japan in Kanazawa a city rich in history and culture. The city of Kanazawa has a highly respected intellectual profile since the time of the fiefdom (1598-1867). Kanazawa University is divided into two main campuses: Kakuma and Takaramachi for its approximately 10,200 students including 600 from overseas.

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Kanazawa University research: Potential drug treatment for particular type of lung-cancer - PR Newswire UK

The world-altering coronavirus behind the COVID-19 pandemic is thought to be just 60 nanometres to 120 nanometres in size. This is so mind bogglingly small that you could fit more than 400 of these virus particles into the width of a single hair on your head. In fact, coronaviruses are so small that we cant see them with normal microscopes and require much fancier electron microscopes to study them. How can we battle a foe so minuscule that we cannot see it?

One solution is to fight tiny with tiny. Nanotechnology relates to any technology that is or contains components that are between 1nm and 100nm in size. Nanomedicine that takes advantage of such tiny technology is used in everything from plasters that contain anti-bacterial nanoparticles of silver to complex diagnostic machines.

Nanotechnology also has an impressive record against viruses and has been used since the late 1880s to separate and identify them. More recently, nanomedicine has been used to develop treatments for flu, Zika and HIV. And now its joining the fight against the COVID-19 virus, SARS-CoV-2.

Diagnosis

If youre suspected of having COVID, swabs from your throat or nose will be taken and tested by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). This method checks if genetic material from the coronavirus is present in the sample.

Despite being highly accurate, the test can take up to three daysto produce results, requires high-tech equipment only accessible in a lab, and can only tell if you have an active infection when the test is taken. But antibody tests, which check for the presence of coronavirus antibodies in your blood, can produce results immediately, wherever youre tested.

Antibodies are formed when your body fights back against a virus. They are tiny proteins that search for and destroy invaders by hunting for the chemical markers of germs, called antigens. This means antibody tests can not only tell if you have coronavirus but if you have previously had it.

Antibody tests use nanoparticles of materials such as gold to capture any antibodies from a blood sample. These then slowly travel along a small piece of paper and stick to an antigen test line that only the coronavirus antibody will bond to. This makes the line visible and indicates that antibodies are present in the sample. These tests are more than 95% accurate and can give results within 15 minutes.

Vaccines and treatment

A major turning point in the battle against coronavirus will be the development of a successful vaccine. Vaccines often contain an inactive form of a virus that acts as an antigen to train your immune system and enable it develop antibodies. That way, when it meets the real virus, your immune system is ready and able to resist infection.

But there are some limitations in that typical vaccine material can prematurely break down in the bloodstream and does not always reach the target location, reducing the efficiency of a vaccine. One solution is to enclose the vaccine material inside a nanoshell by a process called encapsulation.

These shells are made from fats called lipids and can be as thin as 5nm in diameter, which is 50,000 times thinner than an egg shell. The nanoshells protect the inner vaccine from breaking down and can also be decorated with molecules that target specific cells to make them more effective at delivering their cargo.

This can improve the immune response of elderly people to the vaccine. And critically, people typically need lower doses of these encapsulated vaccines to develop immunity, meaning you can more quickly produce enough to vaccinate an entire population.

Encapsulation can also improve viral treatments. A major contribution to the deaths of virus patients in intensive care is acute respiratory distress syndrome, which occurs when the immune system produces an excessive response. Encapsulated vaccines can target specific areas of the body to deliver immunosuppressive drugs directly to targeted organs and helping regulate our immune system response.

Transmission reduction

Its hard to exaggerate the importance of wearing face masks and washing your hands to reducing the spread of COVID-19. But typical face coverings can have trouble stopping the most penetrating particles of respiratory droplets, and many can only be used once.

New fabrics made from nanofibres 100nm thick and coated in titanium oxide can catch droplets smaller than 1,000nm and so they can be destroyed by ultraviolet (UV) radiation from sunlight. Masks, gloves and other personal protective equipment (PPE) made from such fabrics can also be washed and reused, and are more breathable.

Another important nanomaterial is graphene, which is formed from a single honeycomb layer of carbon atoms and is 200 times stronger than steel but lighter than paper. Fabrics laced with graphene can capture viruses and block them from passing through. PPE containing graphene could be more puncture, flame, UV and microbe resistant while also being light weight.

Graphene isnt reserved for fabrics either. Nanoparticles could be placed on surfaces in public places that might be particularly likely to facilitate transmission of the virus.

These technologies are just some of the ways nanoscience is contributing to the battle against COVID-19. While there is no one answer to a global pandemic, these tiny technologies certainly have the potential to be an important part of the solution.

Josh Davies is a PhD Candidate in Chemistry at Cardiff University.

This article was originally published in The Conversation.

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Coronavirus nanoscience: the tiny technologies tackling a global pandemic - Reaction