New intelligent nanomaterials for diagnostic and drug delivery

Project aim: This project proposes the synthesis of new mesoporous silicate nanoparticles (MSN) and periodic mesoporous organosilicate nanoparticles (PMO) to improve the diagnosis and treatment of cancer, combining diagnostic and therapeutic molecules in the same nanocarriers.

 

About the project: Surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are currently standard treatments for cancer. Despite great advances, there are limitations in cancer therapy that include nonspecific distribution of agents, poor delivery in inadequate concentrations, which cause irreversible side effects, and the development of drug resistance. The application of nanotechnology in medicine offers new possibilities for overcoming these shortcomings of conventional therapy and raises hope in the optimization of therapy.

 

Nanosystems can be functionalized with molecules that increase the biocompatibility of materials and allow the immune system to avoid reactions (e.g. polyethylene glycol (PEG)), as well as functional groups that help target tumors through specific interactions between nanomaterials and receptors in cancer tissue (e.g. folic acid). As part of this general strategy, we are also developing multifunctional core-shell nanoparticles of different composition (core: magnetic nanoparticles, gold nanoparticles and others, shell: MSN, PMO) that will contribute to the diagnostic or therapeutic functions of the nanosystem. The drugs can be adsorbed on the surface of the nanoparticles or filled inside the mesopores, where they are retained by closing the mesopores with appropriate molecules.

 

Drug release is then examined after exposure to various stimuli (e.g., magnetic field, enzymes, or acidification), which would allow selective delivery of therapeutically active substances to tissues exposed to the appropriate stimulus.