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CHICAGO Derek Norris Rays Jersey , Nov. 28 (Xinhua) -- Researchers at the University of Illinois (UI) are trying to use tiny drug-laden nanoparticles to seek and destroy cancer stem cells.


They used the nanoparticles to deliver niclosamide that targets a protein called CD44 only appearing on the surface of cancer stem cells, and found the cancer stem cells lost their stemlike properties after treatment with the niclosamide-bearing targeted nanoparticles, and are less able to cause the cancer to recur or metastasize.


The researchers also detected a significant decrease in overall cancer cell growth, both in the cell cultures and in the mice, according to a report released Monday on the UI website.


"I call them 'GPS-enabled nanoparticles Corey Dickerson Rays Jersey ,' because they seek out only the cells that have cancer stem cell properties. Then they latch onto the cells and deliver the drug," said Dipanjan Pan, a UI professor of bioengineering. "To the best of our knowledge, this is the first demonstration of delivering cancer stem-cell-targeted therapy with a nanoparticle."


Cancer stem cells represent a tiny fraction of cells in a tumor, but it only takes one or two to seed a new tumor Colby Rasmus Rays Jersey , Pan said. The challenge for physicians and researchers is not only finding these cells, but treating them.


Previous study found that niclosamide works on a particular gene-regulation pathway in cancer stem cells. Niclosamide is on the World Health Organization's List of Essential Medicines, which is an index of the safest and most effective drugs in the world, and is a drug commonly prescribed to treat tapeworm infections.


"This work is important to future researchers working in the field of cancer stem cells," said postdoctoral researcher Santosh Misra Chris Archer Rays Jersey , the first author of the study. "We described and confirmed the proteins and genes responsible for vital processes in these cells, and that is opening up new avenues to make better therapies."


UI researchers are now working to create a combination therapy that can deliver drugs for the primary cancer, such as traditional chemotherapies, as well as targeted agents that can treat cancer stem cells. They are also testing the nanoparticle drug-delivery system in large animal models to bring it a step closer to the clinic.


The study has been published in the journal Molecular Cancer Therapeutics.



Bangladeshi Christians receive communion at a church in Nagori, near Dhaka Brad Boxberger Rays Jersey , on Tuesday. Photo: AFP

As a young man, Bidhan Kamol Rosario left his Catholic village to fight for Bangladesh's independence. Now he questions his future in the country after a rise in Islamist extremism that has left minorities living in fear.


As Bangladesh's small Catholic community eagerly awaits the first visit by a pope in more than 30 years, many say it has never been more difficult to practice their faith in the Muslim-majority country.


Christian leaders say many have left Bangladesh in recent years as the community increasingly finds itself targeted by Islamists.


Last year, two converts from Islam were murdered and a Catholic grocer brutally hacked to death during a campaign by Islamist extremists that also targeted Hindus and other minorities.


"In the War of Liberation, we wanted a beautiful Bangladesh which embraced all types of people from all races Alex Cobb Rays Jersey , faiths, creeds and religions," said Rosario, 65, of the 1971 war that brought independence for the former East Pakistan.


"I never wanted advantages or favors for myself Wilson Ramos FlexBase Jersey , only that there be equal rights for all... But now I do not believe there is any equality for us."


From peace to peril


Christians make up less than 0.5 percent of Bangladesh's