Scientists have created particles to destroy cancerous tumors and activate the immune system.

Specialists from Weill Cornell Medical Center and Duffield College of Engineering at Cornell University in the USA have developed ultra-small silicon dioxide nanoparticles capable of directly destroying prostate tumors and activating the immune system to fight the disease. This was reported on July 8 by Science Daily (SD) magazine.

The developed particles, dubbed "Cornell Prime dots" (C' dots), are made from amorphous silica, a material that naturally occurs in food. In experiments on mouse models with aggressive prostate cancer, the use of these nanoparticles led to complete remission in a number of individuals. Scientists have found that the particles make tumor cells vulnerable to the process of self-destruction and transfer the tumor microenvironment from a "cold" (immune-resistant) to a "hot" (active) state.

One of the key mechanisms of action was ferroptosis, a specific form of cell death caused by intense oxidation inside them. Nanoparticles collect iron ions from the bloodstream and deliver them inside tumor cells, which triggers the process of destruction of their membranes. To ensure the accuracy of the exposure, a molecule recognizing the PSMA protein on the surface of prostate cancer cells was attached to the particles.

The best survival rates were recorded with combination therapy. The combination of nanoparticles with immunotherapy drugs provided complete or almost complete remission in 40% of the experimental animals. The addition of a third component that blocks specific macrophages increased the rate of complete recovery to 50%.

The authors of the study emphasized that previously these nanoparticles had already passed the late stages of clinical trials for use in surgery under the control of imaging. In the near future, the scientific group plans to move to clinical trials of a new therapeutic method in humans to assess its safety and effectiveness.

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On July 4, the journal PLoS Medicine pointed to the association of cancer death risk with a sedentary lifestyle. According to the publication, every additional hour in a sitting position increases the risk of death from cancer by an average of 10%. At the same time, scientists noted that replacing one hour of sitting with light physical activity reduces the risk by 12%.