BioCentury
ARTICLE | Emerging Company Profile

NanoVector: Planted in the nucleus

July 13, 2009 7:00 AM UTC

NanoVector Inc. believes its plant virus-based nanoparticle technology will allow it to deliver drugs precisely inside targeted cells, reducing side effects and improving the efficacy of chemotherapeutics and other drugs.

The technology exploits the chemical sensing ability of the red clover necrotic mosaic virus (RCNMV). When RCNMV enters a host cell via receptor-mediated endocytosis, the reduced levels of calcium and magnesium inside the cell activate the virus and allow it to unload its genomic cargo for replication. It takes 4-6 hours for the vector to open once it enters the cytosol...