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Northwestern University researchers(1) have shown that nanodiamonds(2) -- much like the carbon structure(3) as that of a sparkling(4) 14 karat(5) diamond but on a much smaller scale -- are very effective(6) at delivering(7) chemotherapy(8) drugs to cells(9) without the negative effects(10) associated with(11) current(12) drug delivery(13) agents(14).

Their study, published online(15) by the journal Nano(16) Letters, is the first to demonstrate the use of nanodiamonds, a new class of nanomaterials(17), in biomedicine(18). In addition to(19) delivering(20) cancer drugs(21), the model could be used for other applications(22), such as fighting tuberculosis(23) or viral infections(24), say the researchers.

Nanodiamonds promise to(25) play a significant(26) role in improving cancer treatment by limiting uncontrolled(27) exposure(28) of toxic(29) drugs to the body. The research team reports that aggregated(30) clusters(31) of nanodiamonds were shown to be ideal for carrying a chemotherapy drug and shielding(32) it from normal cells so as not to kill them, releasing(33) the drug slowly only after it reached its cellular target(34).

Another advantage(35) of the material, confirmed(36) by a series of genetic studies(37) also reported in the paper, is that nanodiamonds do not cause cell inflammation(38) once the drug has been released and only bare(39) diamonds are left. Materials currently used for drug delivery can cause inflammation, a serious complication(40) that can predispose(41) a patient to cancer, block the activity(42) of cancer drugs and even promote(43) tumor growth(44).

“There are a lot of materials that can deliver drugs well, but we need to look at what happens after drug delivery,” said Dean Ho, assistant professor(45) of biomedical engineering(46) and mechanical engineering(47) at Northwestern's McCormick School of Engineering and Applied Science(48), who led the research.