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Project title:

Nanoparticles designed to target chemokine-related inflammatory processes in vascular diseases and cancer metastasis and implementation of a biosensor to diagnose these disorders. Acronym: NANODIATER

Background: A common initial event occurring in atherosclerotic plaque formation and cancer cell metastasis is an inflammatory process and the subsequent repertoire of chemokines and cell adhesion molecules expressed specifically by activated vascular endothelial cells (EC). Subsequently, circulating immune cells (i.e. leukocytes) are recruited and migrate within the developing atheroma and, in cancer; tumour cells cross EC and metastasize within the tissues. In both cases, therapeutically blockage and/or early diagnosis of inflammation may prevent their dreadful outcome.

Project aims: to find an alternative therapeutic approach, namely to manufacture specifically designed nanoparticles (NP) to be used as vehicles for targeted drug delivery restrictively to the inflammatory sites and to develop a nanoparticle-based tool for easy and accurate detection in the peripheral blood of tumour metastatic cells or inflammatory cells, a �cell sensor�.

Working hypothesis: Specifically designed NP carrying chemokine antagonists (CA) or chemokine receptor antagonists (CRA) could recognise and bind to a target molecule expressed exclusively by the activated EC surface (i.e. VCAM-1). Upon binding, the NP will release the CA or CRA, which will block the interaction chemokine/chemokine receptors and thus inhibit transmigration of leukocytes and atheroma development and of tumour cancer cells impeding metastasis.

Objectives: 1. blockage of transmigration of leukocytes in atherosclerosis, and of tumour metastatic cells in cancer; 2. to create a diagnosis kit for non-invasive detection of blood circulating inflammatory cells or metastatic tumour cells that can predict the evolution of these diseases.