'Nanomachines' That Penetrate and Kill Cancer Cells... No Side Effects in Anticancer Treatment

KIST Research Team

Conceptual diagram of a nanomachine that penetrates and kills cancer cells developed by the KIST research team. Photo by Journal of the American Chemical Society.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] A domestic research team has developed a new type of 'nanomachine' therapy that penetrates and kills cancer cells by piercing their cell membranes.

The Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST) announced on the 20th that Dr. Youngdo Jung's team at the Center for Biomolecular Recognition developed a new biochemical nanomachine that penetrates and kills cells by folding and unfolding molecular movements in specific cellular environments such as cancer cells.

The research team focused on the hierarchical structure of proteins. Proteins have a hierarchical separation between the axis of the large structure and the actual moving parts, allowing specific parts to move intentionally around the axis. However, most existing nanomachines designed with the moving parts and axis on the same hierarchical level move both parts simultaneously, making it difficult to control specific parts as intended.

The team synthesized and combined 2nm-scale gold nanoparticles and molecules that can fold and unfold depending on the surrounding environment to create a nanomachine with a hierarchical structure. This nanomachine defined movement and direction through moving organic molecules and the large inorganic nanoparticle acting as an axis. Upon encountering the cell membrane, it exhibited mechanical folding and unfolding movements, directly penetrating the cell and damaging organelles to induce cell death. Unlike capsule-type nanocarriers that deliver therapeutic drugs, this method kills cancer cells directly through mechanical movement without using anticancer drugs.

Going further, the team inserted latch molecules into the nanomachine to better control mechanical movement suitable for killing cancer cells. The inserted latch molecules were designed to release only in low pH environments, restricting the nanomachine's movement and preventing penetration into normal cells with relatively higher pH (around 7.4). However, in the acidic environment near cancer cells (around pH 6.8), the latch molecules released, inducing mechanical movement and resulting in penetration into cancer cells.

Dr. Youngdo Jung said, “The developed nanomachine was inspired by proteins that change shape according to their environment to perform biological functions. We proposed a new method that directly penetrates and kills cancer cells through the mechanical movement of molecules attached to the nanomachine without drugs, which could be a new alternative to overcome the side effects of conventional anticancer treatments.”

The research results were published in the latest issue of the international chemistry journal Journal of the American Chemical Society (IF: 15.42).