Researchers at Georgia Tech and Emory University have developed a new method for delivering small bits of genetic material to the body to aid in the treatment of inflammatory bowel diseases. 

The method consists of encapsulating small pieces of RNA into specially engineered particles.  This protects the RNA as it delivered to the intestines.  In the experiments, researchers used a mouse model of ulcerative colitis — a debilitating inflammatory bowel disease in which the digestive tract becomes inflamed, causing severe diarrhea and abdominal pain that can lead to life-threatening complications.  After treatment, tissue samples exhibited signs that the colon was protected from ulcerative colitis. 

“Since ulcerative colitis is restricted to the colon, these results confirm that the siRNA-loaded thioketal nanoparticles remain stable in non-inflamed regions of the gastrointestinal tract while targeting siRNA to inflamed intestinal tissues,” explained Scott Wilson, a graduate student in the Georgia Tech School of Chemical & Biomolecular Engineering. 

The original article can be found at http://gtresearchnews.gatech.edu/thioketal-nanoparticles/.