Fall 2003 Newsletter: Development of a Three-Dimensional Magentic Guidance and Drug Delivery System

$548,000 Grant Award to Axel J. Rosengart, M.D., Ph.D. Assistant Professor Department of Neurology University of Chicago Medical Center

The goal of this project is to attach drugs to small magnetic particles, carriers called nanoparticles, and to guide the particles through blood vessels to a particular body organ or tissue by using magnets outside the body. A part of this undertaking is the creation of a device implanted into the tumor tissue to “catch” the particles, which would deliver a highly selective payload of anticancer drugs designed to treat and repair damaged cells.

What would make this concept possible is the science of nanotechnology, the ability to create microscopic machines 1,000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair.

This groundbreaking research project is a collaborative effort. In addition to the University of Chicago departments of Neurology, Neurosurgery, Pathology and Radiology, four divisions within Argonne National laboratory – chemical technology, engineering technology, materials science, mathematics and computer science – have been enlisted. Illinois Institute of Technology, Drexel University and Case Western Reserve University are part of the team.

This research holds the promise of efficient, targeted drug-delivery systems for cancer patients - and for individuals with many other diseases.