Multifunctional and Multimodal Theranostics: Manipulating Material Properties for Advanced Diagnostics

聚合物在纳米医学中的应用需要一种自下而上的方法，即在应用之前建立和理解基本的化学原理。该项目开发支链聚合物作为治疗医学的新型纳米材料；当miRNA释放时“开启”的成像模式将量化有多少纳米材料到达特定部位，而基于纳米材料物理变化的内置传感器将测量坏死的发生和进展。目的是对如何利用聚合物结构和功能来驱动设备性能有一个基本的了解，为探索下一代治疗学的新技术和方法提供一个平台。

The utilisation of polymers in nanomedicine requires a bottom-up approach, where the fundamental chemistry is well-established and understood before it enables an application. This project develops branched polymers as new nanomaterials for theranostics; imaging modalities that “switch-on” when miRNA is released will quantify how much nanomaterial gets to a specific site, while a built-in sensor based on physical changes in the nanomaterial will measure the onset and progression of necrosis. The aim is to develop a fundamental understanding of how polymer architecture and functionality can be utilised to drive device performance, providing a platform to probe new technology and methodologies for development of next generation theranostics.