A new biological function for a soccer ball-shaped nano-particle
called buckyball has been identified. A research team has found
that buckyball has the ability to block allergic reaction,
making the progress of new therapies for allergy possible.
Allergic disease is the sixth leading cause of chronic disease
in the United States, and though various treatments have been
developed to control allergy, no cure has been found. These
findings advance the up-and-coming field of medicine known as
nanoimmunology. The researchers, from Virginia Commonwealth
University and Luna Innovations Inc., a private, Roanoke, Va.,
research company, are the first to demonstrate that buckyballs
are able to block allergic response in human cell culture
experiments. Buckyballs, or fullerenes, are nanoparticles
containing 60 carbon atoms. Owing to their exclusive structure,
unresponsiveness and steadiness, researchers from a number of
scientific fields have been investigating the tiny, hollow
carbon cages to serve a variety of function