THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, April 8, 1996 TAG: 9604060090
SECTION: DAILY BREAK PAGE: E1 EDITION: FINAL
COLUMN: Techtrack: Gadgets and Gizmos for the Next Century
SOURCE: BY JAMES SCHULTZ, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 55 lines
CONSIDER A budding tree on a warm spring day. Amateur horticulturist and inventor Donald Tomalia did and so was inspired to create the world's first 3-D artificial molecule.
By visualizing how branches multiply, Tomalia figured a way to grow ``dendrimers,'' tiny, perfect, hollow spheres made from proliferating strands of plastic. These minute marvels could revolutionize gene therapy and conventional drug treatments, create computers no bigger than a dust mote, and end up in everything from skin creams to paints.
The name dendrimer is derived from dendron, the Greek word for tree. Key to the molecule's effectiveness is its studded, Velcro-like surface and hollow interior. Chemicals or medication can be packed inside and released gradually; the same substances, attached to the dendrimer's prickly exterior, can boost its effectiveness as a kind of superdrug.
The outer surface can also be configured to permit the flow or storage of electronic data. Personal computers could thus shrink more astonishingly even as computational power soars.
Perhaps most importantly, the dendrimers can be specifically designed to mimic protein molecules or other tiny bioparticles in the body. In theory, dendrimers should be able to effectively move into and alter the functioning of human cells - which could lead to the cure of currently untreatable genetic diseases.
The dendrimers don't appear to trigger the body's autoimmune response, Tomalia says, nor do they seem to harm cells in any way. But exacting clinical trials and approval by the FDA are needed before dendrimers are given the nod for widespread medical use.
The first use of dendrimers is coming in fast-curing coatings, which should be as durable as those on the market and perhaps even more durable. Other dendrimer-based products like shampoos and cosmetics will arrive in two to five years, Tomalia predicts.
Former Tomalia employer Dow Chemical Co. is a major investor in the 56-year-old's Michigan company, Dendritech Inc. By the turn of the century, Tomalia figures, the enterprise could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars. MEMO: Tech Track'' appears Mondays in the Daily Break. Readers with ideas
for future columns are invited to contact staff science and technology
writer James Schultz at (804) 446-2599 or via e-mail at schultz
infi.net ILLUSTRATION: Color drawing by JOHN EARLE, The Virginian-Pilot
3-D plastic molecule...
by CNB