Topic: Nanotechnology is a field of applied sciences focused on the design, synthesis, characterization, and application of materials and devices on the nanometric scale. The application of nanotechnology to medicine, nanomedicine, represents the new scenario in which the pharmaceutical and biotechnological industries are constantly evolving. Recently, nanomedicine has advanced to combine tracking and monitoring techniques with the treatment of a pathology, an approach called theranostics. Thus, a promising approach is the preparation of multicomponent nanosystems, also known as nanoarchitectonics. In these systems, the main actors are not the individual nanoparticles but their interactions, which lead to the emergence of extraordinary properties especially valuable for biomedical applications. Among the wide range of nanoarchitectonics, inorganic-polymeric hybrid nanomaterials possess the ideal requirements for their application as theranostics.
In this context, the general objective of this project is the development of pharmaceutical formulations for therapeutic and/or diagnostic purposes for various human pathologies. In particular, it proposes the design, synthesis, characterization, and application of hybrid nanomaterials based on stimuli-responsive polymers and inorganic nanoparticles of special interest, synergistically combining the properties of the individual materials. The developed nanomaterials must be able to act as therapeutic agents themselves, deliver and release drugs at specific sites, and/or allow their monitoring within the organism.
This work plan is framed within an active line of research (initiated in 2010) focused on the design, development, and study of properties/applications of hybrid nanomaterials whose organic portion corresponds to a polymeric material.
Profile: We are looking for students in the final year of their degree or graduates in Chemistry, Pharmacy, Biochemistry, Chemical Engineering, Biotechnology, or related fields, interested in applying for the 2020 call for doctoral fellowships from CONICET. For students, no more than 5 subjects, including the thesis/final project, should be pending at the time of application.
Contact: For inquiries, please contact Dr. Micaela Macchione (micaela.macchione@unc.edu.ar) or Dr. Miriam Strumia (mcs@fcq.unc.edu.ar).
