Dr Marco Giardiello PhD, MChem, FHEA

Inorganic nanoparticles are used in several diagnostic and therapeutic medical applications. There are multiple drawbacks, however, when inorganic nanoparticles are used in vivo, for example: non- specific targeting and physiological accumulation and associated toxicity risks; nanoparticle variation in properties due to protein binding/immune response. Research is aimed at addressing these issues through the development of Inorganic/Organic Nanocomposite Particles (I/O-NP), where the inorganic component is encapsulated within an organic framework. The platform technology allows for advantages such as: reduction in toxicity; inorganic nanoparticle protection from physiological processes; disease site specific targeting; high payload delivery.

The research themes I/O-NP development is targeted at include:
Superparamagnetic Iron Oxide Nanoparticle (SPION) tracers for Magnetic Particle Imaging (MPI)
Gold nanoparticle (AuNP) based radiosensitisers for Cancer Radiotherapy
Lanthanide Upconversion Nanoparticle (LnUCNP)tracers as Optical Imaging Probes
Polymeric nanocomposites as Theranostic Agents for Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI)