Micro-machines won the Nobel Prize for chemistry can kill cancer cells

Researching the world's smallest machine at the molecular Nobel Prize-winning level in 2016 can effectively kill cancer cells.

On 12 October, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry worth USD 930,000 to three scientists, including Jean-Pierre Sauvage at Strasbourg University (France), J. Fraser Stoddart at Northwestern University (USA) and Bernard L. Feringa at the University of Groningen (Netherlands), according to the New York Times.

Portrait of three scientists receiving the 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry (Photo: NobelPrize.org).

They are successful pioneers of the world's smallest molecular machine about the size of a thousandth of a human hair's width. This technology can be used to create new materials, sensors and new energy storage systems.

"In terms of the development process, the current molecular engine is like an electric motor era in the 1830s. At that time, scientists exhibited a multitude of different cranks and wheels without knowing a day. they will lead to the creation of electric trains, washing machines, fans, and food processing machines, "said the Nobel Committee for Chemistry.

Nanotechnology creates microscopic structures of nanometer size, or a billionth of a meter. This is the field of research that has achieved much success in the past few centuries.

In 1983, Jean-Pierre Sauvage took the first steps in making a molecular machine when he created two interlocking molecular circles using copper ions. These molecules are called catenane.

In 1991, Fraser Stoddart synthesized rotaxane , a ring molecule surrounding a dumbbell shaped shaft. This ring molecule can slide along the axis, like an abacus. Thus Stoddart successfully built a small computer chip that is essentially a molecular abacus, as well as other complex devices such as molecular elevators and artificial muscles.

Illustrations of micro machines destroy cancer cells.(Photo: Student Newspaper).

In 1999, Bernard Feringa became the first to make a molecular engine . It is a micro-propeller that operates with light, rotating continuously in the same direction. The engine turned not fast, but 15 years later Feringa and colleagues pushed the rotation speed to 12 million revolutions per second. In 2011, Feringa's team attached four similar engines to the molecular chassis, creating a four-wheel-drive nano car.

In a living organism there exist many molecular machines that transport materials around cells, build protein structures and participate in cell division. Compared to them, artificial molecular machines are still quite simple, but scientists hope new technologies will have many applications in the future.

"Think about the nano-machines, the future micro-robots that doctors pump into your blood vessels. They will automatically search and destroy cancer cells and transport drugs," Feringa said. "This technology could lead to the creation of smart materials, changing the characteristics based on external signals."