Collaboration between researchers at National Yang Ming University and National Chiao Tung University has led to the development of photothermally responsive, anti-oxidative nanoparticles made from silk and dopamine, National Yang Ming University said yesterday.
The researchers’ development would meet precision medicine needs, it added.
The project marks the first time a photothermally responsive film with medical properties that can be triggered and controlled by exposure to infrared light has been developed in Taiwan, it said.
Photo courtesy of National Yang Ming University
The Miaoli District Agricultural Research and Extension Station helped obtain silkworm cocoons, from which the researchers extracted fibroin that was then concentrated with dopamine in nanoparticles, project leader Chung Tze-wen (鍾次文) said.
Medicine-enriched nanoparticles can be better absorbed and metabolized than other particles with medical properties, Chung said.
A challenge was to create nanoparticles that are biocompatibile and release drug effects over time, he added.
Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that can cover other materials, while silk is a protein fiber that is biocompatibile with dopamine and the human body, Chung said.
The film, made by combining fibroin with heparin, has been lab-tested on mice, he said.
The film reduced the risk of a thrombus forming in wounds on mice, and it is expected that it would also expedite the healing process in humans, he said.
Silk has been used by surgeons to patch a patient’s cardiac muscles, he said, adding that introducing the fiber to other medical applications shows its adaptability.
Seven of the 17 NT$10 million (US$311,604) winning receipts from the November-December uniform invoice lottery remain unclaimed as of today, the Ministry of Finance said, urging winners to redeem their prizes by May 5. The reminder comes ahead of the release of the winning numbers for the January-February lottery tomorrow. Among the unclaimed receipts was one for a NT$173 phone bill in Keelung, while others were for a NT$5,913 purchase at Costco in Taipei's Neihu District (內湖), a NT$49 purchase at a FamilyMart in New Taipei City's Tamsui District (淡水), and a NT$500 purchase at a tea shop in New Taipei City's
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