Prospecting new antifungal strategies based on light and assisted by functional nanostructures

• Grant number: 18/20226-7
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Duration: February 01, 2020 - January 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Biophysics - Radiology and Photobiology
• Convênio/Acordo: CONFAP - National Council of State Research Support Foundations
• Principal Investigator: Anderson Zanardi de Freitas
• Grantee: Anderson Zanardi de Freitas
• Host Institution: Instituto de Pesquisas Energéticas e Nucleares (IPEN). Secretaria de Desenvolvimento Econômico (São Paulo - Estado). São Paulo , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: Beate Saegesser Santos ; Martha Simões Ribeiro ; Renato Evangelista de Araujo

Abstract

The global increase in fungal resistance to conventional drugs demands for new cost-effective therapeutic approaches. Photodynamic inactivation (PDI) appears in this scenario as a non-invasive treatment option, which has shown good results in the eradication of bacteria, fungi and parasites, with the advantage of not selecting resistant microorganisms. PDI involves the use of a photosensitizer (PS), light and oxygen. Cell death occurs when PS absorbs light, triggering the production of reactive oxygen species, killing the cell by oxidative stress. Despite the good results, the success of PDI depends on different factors such as the type of microorganism and how it is organized, as well as parameters related to PS and light. In this project, our objective is to investigate the association of different nanostructures to PDI in search of new and efficient antifungal strategies. For the development of the project, we will create biofilm of Candida albicans, which is an opportunistic fungus in hospital environment, at different stages of maturation. For the PDI, we will use as PS the one that presents resonant absorbance to the absorption of gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and the emission of quantum dots (QDs). In addition, the QDs will be bioconjugated to molecules of interest for cell and biofilm labelling. To define the best light parameters and monitor the effects of the PDI in real time, we will use the optical coherence tomography technique. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

DE PRETTO, LUCAS RAMOS; AMARAL, MARCELLO MAGRI; DE FREITAS, ANDERSON ZANARDI; RAELE, MARCUS PAULO. Nondestructive evaluation of fused filament fabrication 3D printed structures using optical coherence tomography. RAPID PROTOTYPING JOURNAL, v. 26, n. 10, p. 1853-1860, NOV 3 2020. (17/21851-0, 15/15775-3, 19/19465-0, 18/20226-7)