Health + Medicine
Rapid advances in health-related nanoscience are creating a new frontier for precision medicine. Lensless microscopy, on-chip diagnostic sensors and screening devices, nanoparticle drug delivery methods, targeted antibiotics and cancer drugs, and high-throughput drug discovery are at the forefront of translating interdisciplinary research into individualized treatments. Diverse teams of CNSI nanoscientists are pursuing answers to the most serious and perplexing medical questions in illnesses such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes; neurological disorders including Alzheimer’s disease, depression, and autism; and bacterial behaviors and functions that have come into recent focus with the explosion of knowledge on the importance of the human body’s unseen bacterial universe – the microbiome. CNSI’s collaborative atmosphere encourages medical researchers to engage with engineers, chemists, and physicists to address complex problems by leveraging pooled talent and resources. The proximity of CNSI to UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research encourages powerful collaborations among world-class scientists.
Nanomedicines for Cancer
CNSI scientists are developing new techniques to utilize nanotechnology for targeted deliver of therapeutic drugs tuned to specifically target cancer sites in the body. For example, Andre Nel and colleagues’s work in pancreatic cancer has led to the development and preclinical testing of a smart nanocarrier, the “silicasome”, which is capable of delivering optimal amounts of chemotherapeutic agents directly to tumors with decreased side effects and increased efficacy. The approach is remarkably clever and powerful, and it has attracted significant attention in the field as well as the interest of investors. This has led to the recent launch of our newest startup company, Westwood Biosciences Inc., which is focused on bringing silicasome technology to the clinic as rapidly as possible, and on expanding its applications to numerous other types of cancer.
Precision Antibiotics
Research in the development of precision antiobiotics, led by CNSI Director Jeff F. Miller, has resulted in the creation of a “programmable” nanoparticle-based platform for rapidly producing precision antibiotics that can kill bacterial pathogens that are resistant to current drugs. Last August, the US had its first case of a bacterial infection that was resistant to every available antibiotic. This is a global trend that is increasing unabated, and both big and small pharma are failing to innovate. Our technology is the product of an integrated approach involving CNSI electron imaging and nanoengineering capabilities, and it represents a paradigm shift in the treatment and prevention of infectious diseases.
Stem Cell Nanomedicine
The goal of our newest CNSI initiative, conducted in partnership with the UCLA Broad Stem Cell Center, is to create nanotechnologies and nanomaterials for manipulating stem cell development and guiding tissue regeneration. Using a modest amount of seed money we have launched a multidisciplinary team to work on a new scaffold designed to accelerate healing after acute cardiac injury, in a manner that minimizes scarring and regenerates healthy heart tissue. This is one of several efforts we hope to launch that leverages synergy between stem cell medicine and nanosciences to deliver minimally invasive therapies for currently intractable diseases.
Recent Health + Medicine News
March 11, 2020 | Myst Therapeutics Appoints Leading Cancer Immunotherapy Experts to Its Scientific Advisory Board
Myst Therapeutics (Myst), a preclinical stage biotechnology company focused on developing selected TIL-based autologous T cell therapy products for cancer, announced the appointment of five leading experts in the areas of immunotherapy, tumor infiltrating lymphocytes,...
2019 UCLA microscopy image and video contest winners selected
March 4, 2020 | UCLA microscopy image and video contest winners selected by Tiare DunlapThis article was originally published by the UCLA Newsroom he Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCLA recently...
January 28, 2020 | UCLA and MindshareLA to present evenings of science exploration and art
UCLA and MindshareLA will present a year-long series of events that explore innovations ranging in scale from the tiny to the cosmic, with talks, art installations and performances. The program’s first event, “It Came From Nano Space…" will explore the opportunities...
January 13, 2020 | Brain-like device may forecast future of computer technology
Researchers at UCLA and Japan’s National Institute for Materials Science developed a device with the ability to mimic certain characteristics of the brain, according to a study published in Scientific Reports, a Nature Research journal, in October.
December 19, 2019 | Introducing new capabilities for biomechanics of cells and tissues in the NPC Technology Center
Now combined with both a confocal (Zeiss LSM5) and stereomicroscope (Leica M205 FCA), this state-of-the-art, multimodal system combines the power of two established techniques to interrogate the role of biomechanics in natural systems and as a platform for the...
December 18, 2019 | Paper-based test could diagnose Lyme disease at early stages
The researchers built a handheld, paper-based device to detect antibodies against the B. burgdorferi bacteria in serum samples. The device included a sensing membrane that contained several spots covering seven bacterial antigens and a synthetic peptide.December 18,...
December 16, 2019 | Researchers observe brain-like behavior in nanoscale device
UCLA scientists James Gimzewski and Adam Stieg are part of an international research team that has taken a significant stride toward the goal of creating thinking machines.December 16, 2019 | Researchers observe brain-like behavior in nanoscale device ‘Tiny silver...
November 20, 2019 | Carbon Nanotube Technology Exceeds 100 GHz for First Time in RF Applications
Carbonics, Inc. today announced that carbon nanotube technology has for the first time achieved speeds exceeding 100GHz in-radio frequency (RF) applications. The milestone eclipses the performance – and efficiency – of traditional RF-CMOS technology that is ubiquitous...
November 7, 2019 | Researchers convert 2D images into 3D using deep learning
A UCLA research team has devised a technique that extends the capabilities of fluorescence microscopy, which allows scientists to precisely label parts of living cells and tissue with dyes that glow under special lighting. The researchers use artificial intelligence...