Nanoparticle Therapy in Cancer

Howard R. Petty, Ph.D., is professor of ophthalmology and visual sciences, and of microbiology and immunology at Kellogg, where he’s been engaged in research for nearly 20 years.

Along with fellow researchers at Kellogg, Dr. Petty has developed a new nanoparticle therapy—Nanoparticle Therapy in Cancer— that uses a tumor cell's protective mechanism against itself, essentially short-circuiting tumor cell metabolism and killing tumor cells.

This patented technology may help treat ocular cancer, possibly improving visual and survival outcomes for patients.

In a four-year study conducted on a mouse model, Dr. Petty and his colleagues discovered that the new nanoparticle not only killed tumor cells in the eye, but also extended the survival of experimental mice bearing 4T1 tumors, a cell line that is extremely difficult to kill. “Our work has shown that we can extend the survival of mice with this type of tumor.”

Dr. Petty is now working with Hakan Demirci, M.D., and Cheng-mao Lin, Ph.D., on extending this work and ensuring the safety of the nanoparticle therapy.