As you may or may not know, drug addiction has been linked to having certain genes turned on in the genome which make one more susceptible to addiction. Scientists have recently created a nanoparticle that would go into the cell and deliver RNA molecules that would act as an “off switch” for these drug addiction genes. Most of the genes involved Scientists involved in the research said that this technology could be used to help fight neurological disease, AIDS, dementia, and certain cancers.
The gene involved in drug addiction codes a protein known as “DARPP-32”. The nanoparticles carry pieces of siRNA which silences the RNA pieces coding DARP-32. While this method might sound like the holy grail to curing many diseases. Like any method it has some drawbacks. Currently there is no safe method of delivering the siRNA because it is unstable. One method that is currently being tested is delivering the siRNA with goldnanrods (something that has gained significant attention in the scientific community). So far it has been found that nanorods can deliver about 40% of the siRNA. To read more about this visit: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/03/090324101747.htm
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