A5084062790- Ultrasound and Hyperthermia Applications
- Photoacoustic and Ultrasonic Imaging
- Nanoplatforms for cancer theranostics
- Virus-based gene therapy research
- Ultrasound and Cavitation Phenomena
- Nanoparticle-Based Drug Delivery
- Extracellular vesicles in disease
- Cholangiocarcinoma and Gallbladder Cancer Studies
- Cancer Research and Treatments
- Cancer, Hypoxia, and Metabolism
- RNA Interference and Gene Delivery
- 3D Printing in Biomedical Research
- Eicosanoids and Hypertension Pharmacology
- Cytokine Signaling Pathways and Interactions
- Monoclonal and Polyclonal Antibodies Research
- Fatty Acid Research and Health
- Gold and Silver Nanoparticles Synthesis and Applications
- Graphene and Nanomaterials Applications
- Cancer, Lipids, and Metabolism
- Lipid Membrane Structure and Behavior
- Innovative Microfluidic and Catalytic Techniques Innovation
- Inflammatory mediators and NSAID effects
- Cell Adhesion Molecules Research
- Advanced Polymer Synthesis and Characterization
- Advanced biosensing and bioanalysis techniques
University of Leeds
2015-2025
St James's University Hospital
2016-2025
Wellcome Trust
2012-2023
University of Mississippi Medical Center
2023
Cancer Research UK
2005-2010
Concordia University
2010
McGill University
2010
Institute of Cancer Research
2005
University of Aberdeen
2004
Mental Health Research Institute
2004
Molecular recognition reagents are key tools for understanding biological processes and used universally by scientists to study protein expression, localisation interactions. Antibodies remain the most widely of such many show excellent performance, although some poorly characterised or have stability batch variability issues, supporting use alternative binding proteins as complementary applications. Here we report on Affimer research reagents. We selected 12 diverse molecular targets...
Delivery of chemotherapy drugs specifically to cancer cells raises local drug doses in tumors and therefore kills more while reducing side effects other tissues, thereby improving oncological quality life outcomes. Cubosomes, liquid crystalline lipid nanoparticles, are potential vehicles for delivery drugs, presenting the advantages biocompatibility, stable encapsulation, high loading hydrophobic or hydrophilic drugs. However, active targeting drug-loaded cubosomes cells, as opposed passive...
Nanomedicines, while having been approved for cancer therapy, present many challenges such as low stability, rapid clearance, and nonspecificity leading to off-target toxicity. Cubosomes are porous lyotropic liquid crystalline nanoparticles that have shown great premise drug delivery vehicles; however, their behavior in vivo is largely underexplored, hindering clinical translation. Here, we engineered cubosomes based on the space group Im3m loaded with copper acetylacetonate a model drug,...
Lung ultrasound (LUS) has emerged as a safe and cost-effective modality for assessing lung health, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, interpreting LUS images remains challenging due to its reliance on artefacts, leading operator variability limiting practical uptake. To address this, we propose deep learning pipeline multi-class segmentation of objects (ribs, pleural line) artefacts (A-lines, B-lines, B-line confluence) in training phantom. Lightweight models achieved mean...
Micron sized, lipid stabilized bubbles of gas are interest as contrast agents for ultra-sound (US) imaging and increasingly delivery vehicles targeted, triggered, therapeutic delivery. Microfluidics provides a reproducible means microbubble production surface functionalisation. In this study, microbubbles generated on chip using flow-focussing microfluidic devices that combine streams liquid through nozzle few microns wide then subjecting the two phases to downstream pressure drop. While...
Important aspects in engineering gold nanoparticles for theranostic applications include the control of size, optical properties, cytotoxicity, biodistribution, and clearance. In this study, nanotubes with controlled length tunable absorption near‐infrared (NIR) region have been exploited as photothermal conversion agents vivo photoacoustic imaging contrast agents. A length‐controlled synthesis has developed to fabricate (NTs) well‐defined shape (i.e., inner void open ends), high...
Most cancer patients receive chemotherapy at some stage of their treatment which makes improving the efficacy cytotoxic drugs an ongoing and important goal. Despite large numbers potent anti-cancer agents being developed, a major obstacle to clinical translation remains inability deliver therapeutic doses tumor without causing intolerable side effects. To address this problem, there has been intense interest in nanoformulations targeted delivery improve outcomes. The aim work was demonstrate...
Lipid-shelled nanobubbles (NBs) are emerging as potential dual diagnostic and therapeutic agents. Similar to their micron-scale counterparts, microbubbles (1-10 μm), they can act ultrasound contrast agents well locally enhance uptake. Recently, it has been shown that the reduced size of NBs (<1 μm) promotes increased uptake accumulation in tumor interstitial space, which performance. However, accurate characterization NB concentration is challenging may limit translation into clinical use....
Drug penetration into solid tumours remains a major challenge in the effective treatment of cancer. Microbubble (MB) mediated sonoporation offers potential solution to this by enhancing uptake drugs cells. Additionally, using an ultrasound (US) trigger, drug delivery can be localised tumour, thus reducing off-site toxicity associated with systemic delivery. The majority vitro studies involving observation MB-enhanced efficacy have been conducted on 2D monolayer cell cultures, which are known...
BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The omega‐3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) eicosapentaenoic (EPA) has antineoplastic activity at early stages of colorectal carcinogenesis, relevant to chemoprevention cancer (CRC). We tested the hypothesis that EPA also anti‐CRC later treatment metastatic CRC, via modulation E‐type PG synthesis. EXPERIMENTAL APPROACH A BALB/c mouse model, in which intrasplenic injection syngeneic MC‐26 CRC cells leads development liver metastases, was used. Dietary administered...
Microbubbles are potential diagnostic and therapeutic agents. In vivo stability is important as the bubbles required to survive multiple passages through heart lungs allow targeting delivery. Here we have systematically varied key parameters affecting microbubble lifetime significantly increase in stability. Whilst shell core composition found an role improving stability, show that inclusion of small quantities C6F14 bolus improves lifetime. Our results indicate inserts into lipid shell,...
A study to find the optimum sized gold nanorod for use in PA imaging and/or optical-based theranostics, by comparing four different sizes with similar aspect ratios.
Postoperative pain following abdominal surgery is a significant obstacle to patient recovery, often necessitating high analgesic doses associated with adverse effects like cognitive impairment and cardiorespiratory depression. Reliable animal models are crucial for understanding the pathophysiology of post surgical developing more effective pain-relieving strategies. We developed mouse model replicate peritoneal trauma induced by surgery. 30 C57BL/6 mice underwent laparotomy, half undergoing...
Fluorescent imaging of colorectal tumor cells would improve localization and allow intra-operative staging, facilitating stratification surgical resections thereby improving patient outcomes. We aimed to develop test fluorescent nanoparticles capable allowing this in vivo. Dye-doped silica were synthesized. Anti-CEA (carcinoembryonic antigen) or control IgGs conjugated using various chemical strategies. Binding CEA-targeted cancer was quantified vitro, vivo after systemic-delivery murine...
The therapeutic use of microbubbles for targeted drug or gene delivery is a highly active area research. Phospholipid- encapsulated typically have polydisperse size distribution over the 1 to 10 μm range and can be functionalized molecular targeting loaded with drugcarrying liposomes. Sonoporation through generation shear stress on cell membrane by microbubble oscillations one mechanism that results in pore formation improve delivery. A oscillating at its resonant frequency would generate...
Abstract Background Inhibitors of the kinase mTOR, such as rapamycin and everolimus, have been used cancer therapeutics with limited success since some tumours are resistant. Efforts to establish predictive markers allow selection patients likely respond centred on determining phosphorylation states mTOR or its targets 4E-BP1 S6K in cells. In an alternative approach we estimated eIF4E activity, a key effector function, tested hypothesis that activity predicts sensitivity inhibition cell...
Biodegradable polymers have emerged as highly effective drug delivery vehicles. We combine N-carboxyanhydride and O-carboxyanhydride ring opening polymerisations to synthesise a poly(amino acid)-polyester graft copolymer capable of encapsulating, subsequently releasing doxorubicin via acid-mediated hydrolysis. Consequently, the nanoparticles detailed are extremely promising vehicles for controlled chemotherapeutic agents.
Abstract Gold nanorods (AuNRs) have attracted a great deal of attention due to their potential for use in wide range biomedical applications. However, production typically requires the relatively toxic cationic surfactant cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) leading continued demand protocols detoxify them vivo In this study, robust and facile protocol displacement CTAB from surface AuNRs using phospholipids is presented. After displacement, not detectable by NMR spectroscopy,...
Mouse models of human diseases are an essential part the translational pipeline. Orthotopic tumour mouse increasingly being used in cancer research due to their increased clinical relevance over subcutaneous xenograft models, particularly relation metastatic disease. In this study, we have developed orthotopic colorectal liver metastases (CRCLM) and primary cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) BALB/c nude mice using minimally invasive ultrasound-guided intrahepatic injection. Due its nature, method...
The vascular system is the primary route for delivery of therapeutic drugs throughout body and an important barrier at region disease interest, such as a solid tumour. development complex 3D tumour cultures has progressed significantly in recent years however, generation perfusable vascularised models still presents many challenges. This study microfluidic-based vasculature that can be induced to display properties tumour-associated blood vessels without direct incorporation cells....
We investigated the role of interleukin (IL)-4 receptor (IL-4R) signalling during mouse carcinogen-induced colorectal carcinogenesis and in a case-control genetic epidemiological study IL-4Rα single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs).Azoxymethaneinduced aberrant crypt focus (ACF; 6 weeks) tumours (32 were analysed wild-type (WT) BALB/c mice, as well -/-, IL-13 -/-and 'double-knockout' (DKO) animals.Colorectal cancer (CRC) cases (1502) controls (584) genotyped for six coding SNPs.The association...