Nanorattles for Rapid Detection of Multiple mRNA Cancer Biomarkers

Scientists at Duke University have developed a ‘nanorattle’ system that allows for the detection of mRNA biomarkers of cancer. The tiny structures consist of gold nanospheres with a surrounding silver nanocage, forming the so-called rattle. The nanorattles are also loaded with light scattering dyes called Raman reporters. When illuminated with a laser, the rattles emit significant amounts of light. The researchers developed the technology so that they could detect mRNA biomarkers of cancer, which...