The early detection of cancer may now be possible thanks to a new type of technology developed by IBM. This lab-on-a-chip (LOX) technology could be the next big thing in terms of being able to detect and diagnose diseases such as cancer. A report has just been published about the groundbreaking research led by Joshua Smith and Benjamin Wunsch into the separation of particles down to 20 nanometers in diameter, which is the first discovery of its kind and will hopefully allow them to analyze smaller particles as well such as DNA or viruses.
The actual lab-on-a-chip device is not a new technology, but they are still largely in the early stages of development and may still be some time before they are offered as an alternative, more efficient, disease diagnosis tool. But, thanks to IBM, that time may be getting closer. The focus of their research was based on the separation of small vesicles called exosomes. Exosomes are very important and very abundant throughout the body. They carry significant genetic cargo such as DNA, RNA, surface proteins as well as other biomarkers that are transported between the cells.
So, with scientists able to separate the exosomes in the body for further analysis, the lab-on-a-chip technology will give physicians an insight into the origin of cancer before any symptoms have occurred. Following on from the research, Smith is hoping that this ability to detect particles at this scale will pave the way for detecting viruses or other nanoscale bioparticles. But, the next step, for now, is to continue working with scientists from Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City to confirm that their lab-on-a-chip can detect cancer biomarkers.
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