Boron Biomolecules for Medical Applications

Abstract

Boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) is a method that promises a new and effective form of cancer treatment. Cancer is a devastating disease, the goal of our boron research is to find an alternative treatment option that doesn't come with debilitating side effects for the patients. Boronic medicine is already being used for BNCT research but the efficiency rate is low, scientists are currently looking to improve the method which is why we are testing Boronic Acid with Fluorescence. Fluorescein is a yellow-green fluorescence that can be also used as a tracer. For this to be successful, the boron-10 isotope (10B) needs to be accumulated in a sufficient amount (108 10B atoms/cell) in cancer tissues. In order to selectively deliver 10B atoms to cancer cells, a carrier molecule is required which exploits abnormal cancer cell physiology. This can be achieved by using biologically active molecules as a carrier for boron such as fluorescein.