Prescription nanoreactors

Scientists in Switzerland have developed a nanoreactor that can synthesise and release the antibiotic cephalexin, which is used to treat bacterial infections.

Lowering the drug dose required to effectively treat a patient would save money and reduce side effects. To achieve this, one area of research is focusing on using a ‘prodrug’ approach in which less toxic substrates, or prodrugs, are given to a patient and are converted to the active drug form by an enzyme only at a specific site. To maintain its catalytic activity, the enzyme needs to be protected from the surrounding environment, but also be accessible to the prodrug and able to release the final active drug.  More...

http://www.rsc.org/chemistryworld/2012/10/nanoreactor-releases-antibiotics-treat-bacterial-infections