A team of scientists from Rice University, Texas A&M University and the University of Texas have discovered a new way to destroy cancer cells. The method involves stimulating aminocyanine molecules with near-infrared light, causing synchronized vibrations that destroy cancer cell membranes.
The description and results of the research were published in the journal “Nature Chemistry” (DOI: 10.1038/s41557-023-01383-y).
Pneumatic molecular hammers
Aminocyanine is a synthetic fluorescent dye used in medical imaging to detect cancer. It is stable in water and adheres well to the outside of cells. “These are simple pigments that people have been using for a long time,” says Cicero Ayala Orozco of Rice University, lead author of the study. – It is biocompatible, stable in water and adheres well to the outer lipid lining of cells. Although they are used in imaging, we don't know how to activate them as plasmons yet, he adds.
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