- Biblio. Data
- Description
- Claims
- National Phase
- Notices
- Documents
| Latest bibliographic data on file with the International Bureau | ||||||||||||||||
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| IPC: | B81B 3/00 (2006.01) | |||||||||||||||
| Applicants: | WILLIAM MARSH RICE UNIVERSITY [US/US]; 6100 Main Street, Houston, TX 77005 (US) (All Except US). SCHMIDT, Howard, K. [US/US]; (US) (US Only). DUQUE, Juan, G. [US/US]; (US) (US Only). PASQUALI, Matteo [IT/US]; (US) (US Only). | |||||||||||||||
| Inventors: | SCHMIDT, Howard, K.; (US). DUQUE, Juan, G.; (US). PASQUALI, Matteo; (US). | |||||||||||||||
| Agent: | SHADDOX, Robert, C.; Winstead PC, P.O. Box 50784, Dallas, TX 75201 (US). | |||||||||||||||
| Priority Data: |
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| Title: | SELF-ASSEMBLED NANOPARTICLES - NANOTUBE STRUCTURES BASED ON ANTENNA CHEMISTRY OF CONDUCTIVE NANORODS |
| Abstract: |  The present invention relates in general to nanostructured materials and processes for making same. More particularly, the present inventions relates to a nanoscale composite structure and methods for making same involving a conductive nanorod comprising a tip at each of the nanorod extrema; and a material deposited on at the least the tips, wherein the material comprises a reduced form of a redox species, wherein the redox species is adapted for electrochemical reaction with the conductive nanorod when the conductive nanorod is stimulated as an antenna by an electric field. |
[0047] The present inventors observed clear evidence that SWNT behave as antennas in the presence of light, microwaves and radio frequency fields. The present inventors also found a mechanism to produce high yields of SWNT rings and novel split-ring structures. The present inventors contemplate that these results support the idea that EM-stimulated therapies based on SWNT antennas are possible, and that tunable structures may be developed to optimize RF thermoablation therapies.
[0048] The present inventors anticipate that using SWNT, or similar elongated conductive particles, to generate free radicals in solution may be useful for a variety of applications. By way of example and not limitation, one application may be as a cytotoxic agent in healthcare. In conjunction with a targeting, or localization process, the present process may include stimulating the SWNT with body-penetratine electric fields to generate high concentrations of ROS (Reactive Oxygen Species). These may then have a toxic effect on local tissues. The fields may be localized further by using phased array electro-magnetic sources. This field emission mediated process may be non-linearly dependent (as all field emission processes, described by Fowler-Nordheim i-v curves are) on the applied field and the length of the antennas (length of SWNT). Further the present inventors expect that controlled precipitation/bundling of SWNT (by targeting multiple SWNT to a given target cell) may 'construct' antennae long enough to produce ROS, while individual SWNT may remain essentially inert under electric stimulation. By one or a combination of these means, the present process and nanostructured materials may readily achieve a very selective agent for destroying undesirable tissues, e.g. cancer, perhaps even at the level of individual cells. This may tend to be more desirable than the generalized cytotoxins or radiation-based treatments commonly used today.
