Light Triggered Nanoparticles (LITRE consortium)

The use of liposomes as drug carriers in targeted drug delivery has been studied extensively. Using liposomes, the life-time of a drug is extended several folds which makes it possible to achieve higher doses in the target organ as well as lower side effects. The basic idea of the project is to immobilize gold nanoparticles in liposomes which, upon light exposure, disintegrate in a controlled manner. When light is shed on a solution containing liposomes nanoparticles absorb the light, and by heating up, fluidify the lipid bilayer, releasing the contents of the liposome. The surface of a liposome can also be decorated by targeting molecules, such as peptides, which recognize, e.g. a cancer cell.

The partners of the project LITRE are Aalto University, Department of Chemistry (doc. Lasse Murtomäki and Dr. Maria Sammalkorpi) and University of Helsinki, Faculty of Pharmacy, Centre for Drug Delivery, CDR (prof. Arto Urtti). Aalto University is responsible for the synthesis of nanoparticles and the characterization of their thermal properties. Since the measurement of heat conductivity in these systems is practically unachievable it is modeled with molecular dynamic simulations. CDR is responsible for the pharmaceutical testing of the gold nanoparticle-liposome hybrids as well as the study of targeted delivery. Because the liposomes are activated with light, retina is one of the target organs the drug therapy of which is very difficult with common methods. Experiments are carried out in cell cultures (retina pigment epithelium, endothelial cells, cancer cells), and the best light induced liposomes will be used for drug delivery and drug efficacy (doxorubicin loaded liposomes) studies using SKOV-3 tumor bearing mice and SPECT/CT imaging.