Mimicking vesicle fusion to make Gold nanoparticles easily penetrate cells

rtoz writes: A special class of tiny gold particles can easily slip through cell membranes, making them good candidates to deliver drugs directly to target cells.

A new study from MIT materials scientists reveals that these nanoparticles enter cells by taking advantage of a route normally used in vesicle-vesicle fusion, a crucial process that allows signal transmission between neurons.

MIT engineers created simulations of how a gold nanoparticle coated with special molecules can penetrate a membrane.