Cylindrical polymer brushes as luminescent probes for bioimaging

圆柱形聚合物刷作为生物成像发光探针

• 批准号: 571356-2021
• 负责人: Hudson, Zachary
• 金额: $ 1.82万
• 依托单位: University of British Columbia
• 依托单位国家: 加拿大
• 项目类别: Alliance Grants
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 加拿大
• 起止时间: 2021-01-01 至 2022-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/ase-oro/Details-Detailles_eng.asp?id=729152
• 关键词: Cylindrical; polymer; brushes; luminescent; probes

7 million Canadians live in rural or remote communities, and consistently show poorer overall health outcomes than urban populations. A lack of healthcare professionals as well as longer distances to healthcare facilities are both major drivers of this discrepancy, as the 18% of rural Canadians are served by only 8% of the practicing physicians in Canada. Where healthcare resources are limited, diagnostic tools are needed that are both inexpensive and readily available. Smartphones are now ubiquitous, and with built-in light sources, cameras, and network connectivity are ideal for portable bioanalysis and imaging. These assays require luminescent probes with sufficient brightness to be visible with a smartphone camera. This can be achieved using nanoparticles that incorporate hundreds to thousands of luminescent dye molecules into a single nanoscale object, creating single points of brightness that a smartphone can detect. Polymer dots (or Pdots) are one such class of nanoparticle, consisting of >50% of luminescent polymer by weight or volume, surrounded with a hydrophilic exterior to render them soluble in water. Our research group at UBC develops multifunctional Pdot probes for bioanalysis and imaging.To translate these technologies to application, we must now understand how nanoparticle shape and rigidity impact the circulation time and cellular interactions of Pdots in vivo. Prof. Markus Müllner at the University of Sydney has recently shown that cylindrical polymer brushes (CPBs) - long chains of polymers bonded to a central backbone - can exhibit long circulation times, improved cell penetration, and tunable localization within cells. In collaboration with Prof. Müllner, this project will develop luminescent Pdots with a CPB morphology, and will study their penetration kinetics and imaging capabilities within multicellular tumour spheroids. This project will help us understand how nanoparticle shape affects Pdot performance in imaging for the first time, in both cells and tumour mimics.

700 万加拿大人生活在农村或偏远社区，总体健康状况始终比城市人口差，缺乏医疗保健专业人员以及距医疗机构较远都是造成这种差异的主要原因，因为 18% 的加拿大农村人的健康状况较差。在加拿大，只有 8% 的执业医生提供服务，而在医疗保健资源有限的情况下，需要价格便宜且易于使用的诊断工具，并且内置光源、摄像头和网络连接是理想的选择。用于便携式生物分析和成像，这需要具有足够亮度的发光检测探针，以便通过智能手机摄像头可见。这可以通过将数百至数千个发光染料分子合并到单个纳米级物体中来实现，从而产生单点亮度。聚合物点（或 Pdot）就是这样一类纳米颗粒，由重量或体积超过 50% 的发光聚合物组成，周围有亲水性外部，使其可溶于水。 UBC 团队开发了用于生物分析和成像的多功能 Pdot 探针。为了将这些技术转化为应用，我们现在必须了解纳米颗粒的形状和刚性如何影响 Pdot 在体内的循环时间和细胞相互作用。最近表明，圆柱形聚合物刷（CPB）——与中心主链相连的长链聚合物——可以表现出较长的循环时间、改善的细胞渗透性和细胞内可调节的定位。该项目将与 Müllner 教授合作开发具有 CPB 形态的发光 Pdot，并将研究它们在多细胞肿瘤球体中的渗透动力学和成像能力。该项目将帮助我们首次了解纳米颗粒形状如何影响 Pdot 的成像性能。细胞和肿瘤模拟物。