ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Patience Mthunzi - Laser scientist
Patience Mthunzi wants to use lasers to deliver medicines more effectively.

Why you should listen

Patience Mthunzi is a research group leader at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in Pretoria, South Africa. There, she uses laser "tweezers" to try and separate diseased cells from healthy ones. She's also developed a way to use laser pulses to target drug delivery into cells.

Born in Soweto, Patience got her PhD in physics from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. In 2012, she was named one of 20 Youngest Power Women in Africa by Forbes magazine; that same year she was given the Order of Mapungubwe for her contribution in the field of biophotonics. She's also a TED Fellow.

More profile about the speaker
Patience Mthunzi | Speaker | TED.com
TED2015

Patience Mthunzi: Could we cure HIV with lasers?

Patience Mthunzi: Bi lahko ozdravili HIV z laserji?

Filmed:
1,278,466 views

Uživanje tablet, da bi zaužili zdravilo, je hiter, neboleč in pogosto ne popolnoma učinkovit način zdravljenja bolezni. Potencialno boljši način? Laserji. V tem strastnem govoru, udeleženka programa TED Fellow, Patience Mthunzi pojasni svojo idejo o uporabi laserja za dostavo zdravila naravnost v celice, ki so okužene z virusom HIV. Je še v začetnih stadijih, ampak, a bi lahko bilo zdravilo na obzorju?
- Laser scientist
Patience Mthunzi wants to use lasers to deliver medicines more effectively. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
What do you do when you have a headacheglavobol?
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Kaj naredite, ko imate glavobol?
00:15
You swallowpogoltniti an aspirinaspirin.
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Pojeste aspirin.
00:18
But for this pilltabletke to get
to your headglava, where the painbolečina is,
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A da ta tableta pride do vaše glave,
kjer je bolečina,
00:22
it goesgre throughskozi your stomachželodec, intestinesčrevesje
and variousrazlično other organsorganov first.
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gre najprej skozi vaš želodec,
črevesje in druge organe.
00:28
SwallowingPožiranje pillstablete is the mostnajbolj effectiveučinkovito
and painlessneboleč way of deliveringdostava
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Jemanje tablet je najbolj učinkovit
in neboleč način dostave
00:34
any medicationzdravila in the bodytelo.
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kateregakoli zdravila v telo.
00:37
The downsidespodaj, thoughčeprav, is that swallowingpožiranje
any medicationzdravila leadsvodi to its dilutionredčenje.
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Slaba plat je, da požiranje kateregakoli
zdravila vodi v njegovo razredčitev.
00:43
And this is a bigvelik problemproblem,
particularlyzlasti in HIVHIV patientsbolnikov.
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In to je velik problem,
še posebej pri pacientih s HIV-om.
00:48
When they take theirnjihovi anti-HIVproti HIV drugsdroge,
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Ko vzamejo zdravila za HIV,
00:51
these drugsdroge are good for loweringzniževanje
the virusvirus in the bloodkri,
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so ta zdravila dobra
za nižanje virusa v krvi
00:56
and increasingnarašča the CDCD4 cellcelica countsšteje.
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in višanje števila celic CD4.
00:58
But they are alsotudi notoriousznano
for theirnjihovi adverseškodljivih sidestran effectsučinke,
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A so tudi zloglasna zaradi
svojih neželenih stranskih učinkov,
01:03
but mostlyvečinoma badslab, because they get dilutedRazredčena
by the time they get to the bloodkri,
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v glavnem zato,
ker se razredčijo, ko pridejo v kri
01:08
and worseslabše, by the time
they get to the sitesstrani
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in še slabše, do takrat, ko pridejo tja,
01:11
where it matterszadeve mostnajbolj:
withinznotraj the HIVHIV viralvirusne reservoirsrezervoarji.
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kjer so najbolj pomebna:
v rezervoarje virusa HIV-a.
01:17
These areasobmočja in the bodytelo --
suchtako as the lymphlimfe nodesvozlišča,
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Ti predeli v telesu, kot so limfne žleze,
01:22
the nervousživčni systemsistem,
as well as the lungspljuča --
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živčevje, kot tudi pljuča,
01:25
where the virusvirus is sleepingspanje,
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kjer virus spi,
01:27
and will not readilyhitro
get delivereddostavljeno in the bloodkri
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in ne bo dostavljen v kri
01:30
of patientsbolnikov that are underSpodaj
consistentdosledno anti-HIVproti HIV drugsdroge therapyterapija.
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pacientov,
ki so na redni anti-HIV terapiji.
01:36
HoweverVendar, uponna discontinuationprekinitev of therapyterapija,
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Ko s terapijo prenehamo,
01:40
the virusvirus can awakebuden
and infectokužijo newnovo cellscelice in the bloodkri.
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se virus lahko zbudi
in okuži nove celice v telesu.
01:44
Now, all this is a bigvelik problemproblem in treatingzdravljenje
HIVHIV with the currenttok drugdroge treatmentzdravljenje,
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To je velik problem
pri zdravljenju HIV-a s trenutno terapijo,
01:51
whichki is a life-longvseživljenjsko treatmentzdravljenje
that mustmoraš be swallowedpogoltne by patientsbolnikov.
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ki je doživljenska
in pacienti jo morajo pojesti.
01:55
One day, I satsedel and thought,
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Nekega dne sem se usedla in pomislila:
01:57
"Can we deliverdostavi anti-HIVproti HIV directlyneposredno
withinznotraj its reservoirrezervoar sitesstrani,
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"Ali lahko dostavimo anti-HIV
naravnost v mesto rezervoarja,
02:03
withoutbrez the risktveganje of drugdroge dilutionredčenje?"
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brez tveganja razredčitve?"
02:06
As a laserlaser scientistznanstvenik,
the answerodgovor was just before my eyesoči:
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Kot laserska znanstvenica
sem imela odgovor pred očmi:
02:11
LasersLaserji, of courseseveda.
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laserji, seveda.
02:12
If they can be used for dentistryzobozdravstvo,
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Če jih lahko uporabljamo v zobozdravstvu,
02:15
for diabeticdiabetik wound-healingceljenje ran and surgeryoperacija,
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za zdravljenje diabetičnih ran
in pri operacijah,
02:18
they can be used for anything imaginableZasnov,
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jih lahko uporabljamo za karkoli,
02:21
includingvključno z transportingprevoz drugsdroge into cellscelice.
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vključno za dostavljanje zdravil v celice.
02:25
As a matterzadevo of factdejstvo,
we are currentlytrenutno usinguporabo laserlaser pulsesstročnice
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Pravzaprav, trenutno uporabljamo
laserske pulze,
02:30
to pokesuniti or drillvrtanje extremelyizredno tinymajhen holesluknje,
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da zbodemo ali zvrtamo
ekstremno majhne luknjice,
02:34
whichki openodprto and closeblizu almostskoraj
immediatelytakoj in HIV-infectedHIV okuženih cellscelice,
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ki se odprejo in skoraj nemudoma zaprejo
v celicah okuženih s HIV-om,
02:39
in orderred to deliverdostavi drugsdroge withinznotraj them.
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da bi vanje dostavili zdravilo.
02:42
"How is that possiblemogoče?" you maylahko askvprašajte.
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Morda boste vprašali: "Kako je to mogoče?"
02:45
Well, we shinesijaj a very powerfulmočno
but super-tinysuper-majhen laserlaser beamžarek
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No, posijemo z zelo močnim,
a zelo majhnim laserskim žarkom
02:51
ontona the membranemembrana of HIV-infectedHIV okuženih cellscelice
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na membrano s HIV-om okuženih celic,
02:55
while these cellscelice are immersedpotopljen
in liquidtekočina containingki vsebujejo the drugdroge.
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medtem ko so te celice obdane
s tekočino, ki vsebuje zdravilo.
03:00
The laserlaser piercespierces the cellcelica,
while the cellcelica swallowslastovke the drugdroge
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Laser prebode celico,
medtem ko celica požre zdravilo
03:05
in a matterzadevo of microsecondsmikrosekund.
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v nekaj mikrosekundah.
03:07
Before you even know it,
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Preden se zaveš,
03:09
the inducedpovzročil holeluknjo
becomespostane immediatelytakoj repairedpopravil.
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se ta luknjica v trenutku popravi.
03:13
Now, we are currentlytrenutno testingtestiranje
this technologytehnologijo in testtest tubescevi
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Trenutno preizkušamo to tehnologijo
v epruvetah
03:17
or in PetriPetri dishesjedi,
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ali v petrijevkah,
03:19
but the goalcilj is to get
this technologytehnologijo in the humančlovek bodytelo,
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a cilj je dobiti to tehnologijo
v človeško telo,
03:23
applyveljajo it in the humančlovek bodytelo.
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jo uporabiti v človeškem telesu.
03:25
"How is that possiblemogoče?" you maylahko askvprašajte.
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Vprašali boste: "Kako je to mogoče?"
03:28
Well, the answerodgovor is:
throughskozi a three-headedtri glave devicenaprave.
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Odgovor je: skozi tro-glavo napravo.
03:33
UsingZ uporabo the first headglava, whichki is our laserlaser,
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Z uporabo prve glave, ki je naš laser,
03:36
we will make an incisionrez
in the sitestran of infectionokužbe.
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bomo naredili zarezo na mestu infekcije.
03:40
UsingZ uporabo the seconddrugič headglava, whichki is a camerakamera,
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Z uporabo druge glave, ki je kamera,
03:43
we meandermeander to the sitestran of infectionokužbe.
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gremo na mesto infekcije.
03:45
FinallyKončno, usinguporabo a thirdtretjino headglava,
whichki is a drug-spreadingdrog širi sprinklersprinkler,
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Končno, z uporabo tretje glave,
ki je škropilec zdravil,
03:50
we deliverdostavi the drugsdroge directlyneposredno
at the sitestran of infectionokužbe,
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dostavimo zdravilo naravnost
na mesto infekcije,
03:53
while the laserlaser is again used
to pokesuniti those cellscelice openodprto.
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medtem ko laser uporabimo,
da spet odpremo te celice.
03:58
Well, this mightmorda not seemzdi se
like much right now.
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To se za zdaj morda ne zdi veliko.
04:02
But one day, if successfuluspešno,
this technologytehnologijo can leadsvinec
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A nekega dne, če bo uspešna,
ta tehnologija lahko vodi
04:07
to completepopolna eradicationizkoreninjenje
of HIVHIV in the bodytelo.
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v popoln izbris virusa HIV iz telesa.
04:11
Yes. A curezdravljenje for HIVHIV.
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Da. Zdravilo za HIV.
04:14
This is everyvsak HIVHIV researcher'sraziskovalca dreamsanje --
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To so sanje vsakega
raziskovalca virusa HIV -
04:17
in our caseprimera, a curezdravljenje leadsvinec by laserslaserji.
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v našem primeru, zdravilo,
ki ga vodijo laserji.
04:20
Thank you.
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Hvala.
04:21
(ApplauseAplavz)
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(Aplavz)
Translated by Nika Kotnik
Reviewed by Tatiana Rozanec

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Patience Mthunzi - Laser scientist
Patience Mthunzi wants to use lasers to deliver medicines more effectively.

Why you should listen

Patience Mthunzi is a research group leader at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research in Pretoria, South Africa. There, she uses laser "tweezers" to try and separate diseased cells from healthy ones. She's also developed a way to use laser pulses to target drug delivery into cells.

Born in Soweto, Patience got her PhD in physics from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. In 2012, she was named one of 20 Youngest Power Women in Africa by Forbes magazine; that same year she was given the Order of Mapungubwe for her contribution in the field of biophotonics. She's also a TED Fellow.

More profile about the speaker
Patience Mthunzi | Speaker | TED.com