Photosensitizing nanoparticles functionalized with bioactive peptides

• Grant number: 17/10947-6
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2017
• End date: June 30, 2018
• Field of knowledge: Physical Sciences and Mathematics - Chemistry
• Principal Investigator: Dayane Batista Tada
• Grantee: Suellen Rosa dos Santos
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciência e Tecnologia (ICT). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São José dos Campos. São José dos Campos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Nanoparticles (NPs) have been extensively used as drug delivery systems. NPs have been used to carry and release different kinds of drugs. Also, the system NPs-drug can also act as a new drug. The advantage of using NPs concerns in protecting the drug from interferences of external medium, allowing it to reach the target tissue in its active form. The present project aims at the synthesis of gold NPs useful in the therapy of metastatic melanoma. In order to be therapeutically efficient, these NPs will be functionalized with bioactive peptides whose antitumoral activity has already been proved before. Despite the high therapeutic efficiency presented by these peptides in vitro, the in vivo results were limited by the high instability of these molecules in the biological medium. In this project, the therapeutic efficiency of the peptides will be increased not only by protecting them from the degradation but also by promoting their active targeting to the tumoral tissue. Additionally, it is expected that the funcionalization of NPs with multiple peptides will further increase their therapeutic efficiency by inducing a synergistic effect between the peptides. (AU)