• The group coated iron oxide nanoparticles in albumin, a protein found naturally in blood. The albumin provides a sort of camouflage, giving the loaded nanoparticles time to reach their blood clot target before the body's immune system recognizes the nanoparticles as invaders and attacks them.
  • Next steps in the research, Decuzzi said, will be testing the nanoparticles' safety and effectiveness in other animal models, with the ultimate goal of human clinical trials. Decuzzi said his group will continue to examine the feasibility of using magnetic fields to guide and heat the nanoparticles.
  • The finding is based on experiments in human blood and mouse clotting models. If the drug delivery system performs similarly well in planned human clinical trials, it could mean a major step forward in the prevention of strokes, heart attacks, pulmonary embolisms, and other dire circumstances where clots -- if not quickly busted -- can cause severe tissue damage and death.

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