SONOPTICS: EXPLOITING ULTRASOUND AND LASER SCIENCES FOR GENERIC NON-INVASIVE THERAPIES

这项基础技术提案的目标是彻底改变基因、药物和治疗分子向单细胞和组织样本的传递。我们将使用从超声波和光子学中提取的概念的独特结合，这些概念本质上是通用的适用性。这一新领域将提供前所未有的准确性和给药控制，同时提高疗效和选择性，并大大降低感染风险。这项研究将为研究细胞化学途径或信号（细胞信号转导）到组织学/临床方法的生物学家带来巨大飞跃。例如，在细胞群中，将有可能单独针对每个细胞，将外来生物物质引入任何细胞。这是许多人类疾病研究的核心。通过使用光纤传输和内窥镜，我们设想实现这一基本技术可能使我们能够开发一种非侵入性手术技术。

The objective of this Basic Technology proposal is to revolutionise the delivery of genes, drugs and therapeutic molecules to single cells and tissue samples. We will use a unique marriage of concepts extracted from ultrasonics and photonics that are intrinsically generic in applicability. This new field will deliver unprecedented accuracy and control for delivery, together with improved efficacy and selectivity, and a much reduced risk of infection. This research will lead to a quantum leap for biologists who are studying the cell's chemical pathways or signals (cellular signal transduction) through to histological/clinical approaches. For example within a population of cells it will be possible to target each cell individually, introducing foreign biological material into any cell. This is central for studies in numerous human diseases. By the use of fibre optic delivery and endoscopes, we envisage that the realisation of this basic technology may allow us to develop a non-invasive surgical technique.