São Paulo - Scientists at the University of Michigan in the US, may have created a new weapon against cancer. They have developed a laser from human blood can help doctors find tumors in the body.
Although seem like science fiction movie thing, lasers do not need a complex technology to be made. In fact, it takes only an initial source of light, a material amplifies it and a reflective cavity.
The amplification can be made from almost any material. In 1970, for example, scientists Theodor Hansch and Arthur Schawlow used gelatin twelve different flavors to create a laser. Recently, a group of researchers used a living kidney cell to amplify light.
In the experiment of Michigan, the researchers used a dye called ICG and mixed with human blood. The justification for the use of this dye is that it is fluorescent to infrared light and is already widely used by doctors.
Xudong Fan, one of the authors of the study, said in an interview with New Scientist that the ICG does not emit light alone. However, mixed with blood, it connects to plasma proteins and is able to amplify light.
According to Fan, the ICG builds up in the blood vessels, so areas of the body with a large number of vessels (such as tumors) should shine on contact with the laser. In practice, physicians may inject a small amount of dye into the patient's bloodstream and aim the laser on the skin. Then it would check the brightness with the use of an infrared camera.
The laser has not been tested in living animal tissue, because scientists have not yet found the appropriate material for the reflective cavity. Fan, however, believe that gold nanoparticles will do this role.
In addition, he told New Scientist that researchers still need to ensure that the laser light produced is not too strong. In this case, there would be the risk of burning tissue.
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