Abstract
Background: Progress made by the scientific community in the understanding of cell receptors and metabolic pathways has led to discovery of chemical and protein agents which act as delivery vectors to specific tissues. Conjugating these agents to noble-metal nanoparticles allows for subsequent accumulation on or within targeted cells. Utilizing the unique light absorption properties of these nanoparticles then allows for photothermal heating of the particles and surrounding tissue. Discussion: The heat equations are solved for the case of gold nanoparticles in biological hard tissues, such as bone, for applications to two future cancer therapies: nanophotothermolysis and nanophotohyperthermia. Conclusions: A survey of recent research in bone-targeting bioconjugates and simulations of nanoparticle thermal fields shows promise for these therapies in the near future.
Ethical conduct of research
The authors state that they have obtained appropriate institutional review board approval or have followed the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki for all human or animal experimental investigations. In addition, for investigations involving human subjects, informed consent has been obtained from the participants involved.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending, or royalties.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.