RIYADH: A Saudi woman scientist is currently studying the use of new nanotechnology treatment for malignant tumors which may eventually replace the need for surgery. Dr. Ghada Al-Muttari, head of a research center at California University in San Diego, is in the process of using new “Photon Wave” technology for the treatment of cancerous tumors. She said there are many obstacles impeding the application and spread of nanotechnology, including a lack of specialists and experts in the field and the high cost of research. Added to this, doctors and scientists specializing in nanotechnology rarely communicate. Al-Muttari made the comments in a lecture on nanotechnology at the National Center for Nanotechnology, an affiliate of King Abdul Aziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) in Riyadh. She said it was not previously possible for scientists to manufacture substances or particles at sizes ranging between 10 and 1,000 nanometers, but they can do it now. A nanometer is one billionth of a meter. “We doctors we have discovered the great advantage of manufacturing these sizes in medical research. I have conducted several experiments on small animals and I have succeeded in conducting these experiments on big animals. This has encouraged me to conduct these experiments on human beings.” On the sidelines of the scientific gathering Dr. Muhammad Al-Fakeeh, the Supervisor of the National Center for Biotechnology at KACST, said this center has been established recently as an independent unit. Different research is conducted in the bio-environmental, agricultural, industrial and medical fields. Additionally, he said there is close research cooperation between the center and educational hospitals. One of the most prominent achievements of the center was mapping the genetic structure of the Arab camel. The mapping was done in cooperation with the Beijing Center for Genes Research and North Weston University from the United States. Al-Muttari is the only woman specializing in nanotechnology in the world. She is listed as a new inventor in the US and has been awarded a prestigious prize for her scientific research on the photon wave. The photon concept has led to momentous advances in experimental and theoretical physics such as laser developments. It has been applied to quantum field theory and used to measure molecular distances. Al-Muttari has been given US$3 million as a research grant to pursue her research.
