Center for Systems Biology

Translational Program of Excellence in Nanotechnology (TPEN)

The overall goal of this NHLBI funded Program (PI: R. Weissleder) is to create and support a highly multidisciplinary team of expert chemists, biologists, engineers and physicians to develop and rapidly translate new nanotechnologies to better diagnose and treat heart, lung and blood disorders. The current team includes investigators from the Broad Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS), Harvard Medical School (HMS), Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH).

Specific applications of nanotechnology in this application include molecular imaging and sensing, drug delivery, targeted therapies and tissue repair. Powerful chemical biology approaches are being used to functionalize nanomaterials and to test their biosafety at unprecedented throughputs.

There are currently six innovative and applied Research Projects.

• Project 1 (Shaw) creates and tests libraries of nanoparticles to induce cardiac differentiation of stem cells.
• Project 2 (Lee, Weissleder) integrates a novel micro-chip based NMR device with magnetic nanosensors for rapid, high-throughput assay of circulating endothelial cells.
• Project 3 (Weissleder) technology from project 2 is applied to develop a fast, specific and low-cost diagnostic test for pulmonary/systemic tuberculosis.
• Project 4 (Libby) develops, tests and validates multi-modality nanosensors for early, sensitive, and comprehensive non-invasive detection of heart transplant rejection.
• Project 5 (Hilderbrand) develops novel polymeric composites to sense reactive oxygen species in vulnerable plaque. To identify the most promising nanoagent for clinical detection of rupture-prone atherosclerotic lesions.
• Project 6 (Nahrendorf) tests protease-activatable sensors of varying design and pharmakokinetics.
• Project 7 (McCarthy) tests novel macrophage targeted theranostic nanoparticles as a local treatment option for inflamed atherosclerotic plaques.

NHLBI Inter-PEN Quarterly Newsletter

• Vol 3, Issue 4, November 2009
• Vol 3, Issue 4, August 2009
• Vol 3, Issue 2, May 2009
• Vol 3, Issue 1, February 2009
• Vol 2, Issue 4, November 2008
• Vol 2, Issue 3, August 2008
• Vol 2, Issue 2, May 2008
• Vol 2, Issue 1, February 2008
• Vol 1, Issue 4, November 2007
• Vol 1, Issue 3, August 2007
• Vol 1, Issue 2, May 2007
• Vol 1, Issue 1, February 2007

The PENs and their PIs

Nanotechnology: Detection & Analysis of Plaque Formation Emory University Georgia Institute of Technology P.I. - Gang Bao, Ph.D. Director , Emory-GT, Program of Excellence in Nanotechnology CoE Distinguished Professor The Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering Georgia Institute of Technology
Nanotherapy for Vulnerable Plaque The Burnham Institute University of California Santa Barbara The Scripps Institute P.I. - Jeffrey W. Smith, Ph.D. Professor Director, Program of Excellence in Nanotechnology Burnham Institute for Medical Research
Integrated Nanosystems for Diagnosis and Therapy Washington University in Saint Louis University of California Santa Barbara University of California Berkeley P.I. - Karen L. Wooley, Ph.D. James S. McDonnell Distinguished University Professor in Arts & Sciences Professor, School of Arts & Sciences, Department of Chemistry Professor, School of Medicine, Department of Radiology Faculty member in the Center for Materials Innovation

Links

• NHLBI-PEN
• MGH-Harvard Program

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