India, July 17 -- Researchers at Oregon State University may have found a new way to treat glioblastoma, the deadliest type of brain cancer, with the help of tiny fat-based particles, called lipid nanoparticles, that can carry genetic material across the brain's protective barrier and directly target glioblastoma cells.
In a study published in the Journal of Controlled Release, the researchers tested the treatment in mice with glioblastoma. The nanoparticles successfully crossed the blood-brain barrier and delivered a cancer-fighting therapy, increasing the animals' median survival by 50 percent compared with untreated mice.
The nanoparticles were coated with mannose, a type of sugar that is similar to glucose, the body's main source of e...