Two-photon nanoparticles improve tumor-cell detection

March 31, 2008, Paris, France--Researchers from several CNRS-associated laboratories associated Centre National De La Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) have succeeded in synthesizing porous nanoparticles that are capable of absorbing the energy of two photons in the near-infrared and then re-emitting radiation used for medical imaging by fluorescence. These two-photon nanoparticles should enable the more precise detection of tumor cells and, in the longer term, better-targeted therapy.