NEWSRESEARCH


was present,” said lead researcher Professor Mikala Egeblad.


The NETs, Egeblad added, encouraged breast cancer cells to spread in the mice, possibly by creating small holes in tissues that the cancer cells can squeeze through.


In an attempt to prevent this process the researchers treated the mice with tiny particles carrying molecules that can break down DNA.


The experimental nanoparticle treatment reduced the spread of breast cancer to the lungs in the mice.


CANCER CELLS MAY ‘HIJACK’ WHITE BLOOD CELLS TO HELP


SPREAD TUMOURS White blood cells that usually help fight infections could be co-opted by cancer cells to help tumours spread, a US study has found.


Researchers at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory found that neutrophils – the most common type of white blood cell – can be ‘hijacked’ by cancer cells and used to aid the spread of breast tumours to the lungs in mice.


The study, which was published in Science Translational Medicine, also shows a possible way of preventing this process, which could have


US SCIENTISTS ‘CREATE’


LUMINOUS LIGHT University of Vermont scientists have discovered a method to artificially create luminescence that could potentially have a range of applications, such as medical dyes and LED bulbs.


Working together with researchers at Dartmouth College in New Hampshire, they found that when molecular rotors were placed in high viscosity liquids, they emitted a vivid green colour.


8 | Tomorrow’s Laboratories


implications for the development of new cancer treatments.


Neutrophils are important components of the immune system that help destroy potentially harmful invaders, such as bacteria.


One way that the cells do this is by releasing meshes of DNA when they detect a threat. These form dense web-like structures outside the cell called NETs.


These NETs are studded with tiny toxic molecules that can break down and digest the invaders.


Using imaging techniques in mice with breast cancer, the researchers showed that cancer cells caused neutrophils to release their NETs “even when no infection or invader


After absorbing light, the rotors attempted molecular relaxation – rapid vibrating, stretching and releasing heat – to get to their lowest energy excited state. But the more viscous liquids prevented the rotors from being able to vibrate fully to reach that stage, thus the green light was emitted.


When these molecular rotors were in a less viscous liquid, they emitted a weaker, reddish glow – and further investigation revealed that these rotors broke a long-standing chemistry law, known as ‘Kasha’s Rule’, that states that luminescent molecules will only emit the same


Dr Ilaria Malanchi, from the Francis Crick Institute, part-funded by Cancer Research UK, described the study as ‘elegant’, adding that it ‘shows a potential way to stop particular immune cells from helping tumours spread’.


This promising discovery, Malanchi said, could have relevance for treating patients.


Malanchi explained: “The researchers found aggressive breast cancer cells trick neutrophils into producing DNA traps, which help the cancer cells spread to the lungs in mice.


“Importantly, they also identified a possible way to target this neutrophil activity using nanoparticles, which could be developed into a new treatment.


“But further research is needed to see if this approach will work in cancer patients.”


colour of light, regardless of the colour of light it absorbs.


Morgan Cousins, a doctoral student and co-author at the University of Vermont, said: “The compound we found is very bright, and due to its viscosity sensitivity, may have a multitude of applications.


“We see uses for these kinds of molecules from industry materials, to new kinds of LEDs, to biomedical imaging.”


The research was published in Nature Chemistry.


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