Collaborative Research: Interaction between Spherical Particles and Biomembranes

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The Biomaterials program in the Division of Materials Research funds the collaborative efforts of researchers at University of California Irvine and University of California Los Angeles to study how nanoparticles cross the surfactant-decorated air-water barrier within the lungs. This project is cofunded by the Biomechanics and Mechanobiology program in the Division of Civil, Mechanical and Manufacturing Innovation. To understand this transport of nanoparticles within the lung, the researchers plan to address the fundamental physics governing the interaction of small particles and monolayers, which in turn has broader implications for their interaction with biological membranes. The main focus of this study will be to understand the role of monolayer dynamics, e.g., the compression and expansion of the lung during breathing, and on particulate transport through the monolayer. This experimental approach would be developing a new experimental model combining dynamic Langmuir monolayer techniques 'expanding and compressing of a surfactant layer' with cellular culture models used in traditional static studies of the lung. In addition, new theories for nonequilibrium monolayer structure and dynamics, e.g. folding, will be developed as part of this project. The proposed teaching and training include interdisciplinary training of graduate and undergraduate students in materials research, physics and biology, and they will be participating in the design and development of the new experimental and theoretical studies, and close collaboration with researchers at UCLA Center for Biological Physics.The interaction of nano- and micron-scale particles with the air-water barrier in the lung has significant health impacts, some positive and some negative. On the negative side, small particles making up part of air pollution have a negative impact on health when they enter the bloodstream through the lung. On the positive side, a better understanding of how particles cross the lung barrier into the blood stream will allow for the creation of new aerosolized drugs that could be delivered without injections providing a range of health benefits. For example, this provides great benefit to diabetics and others who otherwise require frequent injections. To better understand how particles cross the lung barrier, one needs a model system that incorporates the compression and expansion of the lung that occurs during breathing. This award will support the work necessary to develop such an experimental system and to understand theoretically how particles cross the lung barrier. The research also provides for the training of graduate and undergraduate students in the interdisciplinary techniques at the boundaries of physics and biology, which is necessary for the next generation of researchers, and development of the scientific work force of the future.