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Light used to activate drugs in the body

Posted on: Wednesday, 1 April 2009, 11:02 CDT

Spanish scientists say the new practice of using light to activate medications in the body is efficient, especially when used in treating some cancers.

Researchers at the University of Santiago de Compostela said the emerging process uses biocompatible materials that are sensitive to certain physiological variables or external physicochemical stimuli.

Current research, the scientists said, involves the development of systems capable of delivering an adequate dose of drug at a target site and enhancing the medication's therapeutic efficiency while avoiding collateral effects.

In the case of cancer, light-sensitive systems are particularly good for direct treatment of malignant cells and minimizing damage to healthy cells, they said.

Near-infrared light is particularly useful as an agent capable of triggering the drug release, said Professor Carmen Alvarez-Lorenzo, co-author of the study. NIR is innocuous, does not cause significant heating in the area of its application and can be useful in the difficult to access areas of the body.

He said external control of drug delivery offers a number of advantages. The process, which can often be controlled by the patient, enables easy and precise control of medication. Switching the light on and off can also trigger or stop the release of a drug.

The study is published in the journal Photochemistry and Photobiology.

Source: United Press International

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