Physical chemist at Argonne National Laboratory mixes a polyethylene glycol (PEG) coating for synthesized polymer nanospheres, while a polymer chemist examines a different PEG formulation. The coated nanospheres can be injected into humans following exposure to chemical, biological or radiological toxins. The nanospheres selectively pick up these toxins and then are drawn out through a magnetic filtration system outside the body. In addition to cleaning biological and radiological toxins from blood, the technology shows promise for delivering therapeutic drugs to targeted cells and organs. The technology uses components approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and a novel approach to magnetic filtration.