Nano-Decoy Lures Human Influenza a Virus to Its Doom
Monday, October 24, 2016 - 12:01
in Health & Medicine
To infect its victims, influenza A heads for the lungs, where it latches onto sialic acid on the surface of cells. So researchers created the perfect decoy: A carefully constructed spherical nanoparticle coated in sialic acid lures the influenza A virus to its doom. When misted into the lungs, the nanoparticle traps influenza A, holding it until the virus self-destructs.