两性色午夜

两性色午夜 Biological Sciences Researcher Receives $1.8 Million NIH Grant for Chronic Wound Healing

Photo of Min-Ho KimThe National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded 两性色午夜 University鈥檚 Min-Ho Kim, Ph.D., assistant professor of biological sciences in the College of Arts and Sciences, a $1,842,350 five-year grant. The grant from the NIH鈥檚 National Institute of Nursing Research is to develop 鈥渘anobombs,鈥 a nanotechnology-based therapeutic platform that can treat biofilm infection in chronic wounds. 

Kim will lead a research collaboration with three other research laboratories. Songping Huang, Ph.D., professor of chemistry at 两性色午夜, will be responsible for the synthesis of functionalized magnetic nanoparticles to be used in the project. Scott Simon, Ph.D., a biomedical engineering professor at the University of California, Davis, will evaluate the potential impact of engineered nanoparticles on host innate immunity. Jose Renau, Ph.D., an associate professor of computer engineering at the University of California, Santa Cruz, will develop and implement tissue temperature monitoring and a feedback control system to ensure the safe application of the thermotherapy system.

The researchers hope the 鈥渘anobombs鈥 will provide a needed tool for the treatment of fragile patients who cannot be successfully treated with standard antibiotic treatments. 

鈥淲ith a clear, present need for an effective antimicrobial therapy for wound infections, we hope to establish a novel platform for 鈥榮mart鈥 treatments for the management of antibiotic-resistant chronic wound infections,鈥 Kim said.

Acute infections, lasting only a few days, are generally treatable with antibiotics. However, in cases where the bacteria forms a biofilm within the human host, which occurs quite often in chronic wounds including diabetic ulcers or venous ulcers, the acute infection develops into a chronic state and it becomes very difficult to treat. 

A critical challenge is that biofilm infections are resistant to conventional antibiotics or antimicrobial agents and readily evade innate immune attack. 

The 鈥渘anobombs鈥 are made of magnetic nanoparticles that are surface-coated with molecules that can specifically recognize bacteria and are controlled by a remotely applied magnetic field.
 
鈥淭o target, we use an exact intensity of the magnetic field which triggers only the 鈥榥anobombs鈥 to absorb significant amounts of magnetic energy,鈥 Kim said. 鈥淭he energy, which can be converted into heat, explodes to kill bacteria while leaving the remaining other normal and healthy tissue intact. The nanobomb treatments would be minimally invasive, resulting in fast recovery times and fewer side effects.鈥 

During the next five years, the study will be focused on validating the therapeutic efficacy of the technology using preclinical animal models of diabetic wound infection and further optimizing the system to ensure safe application. 

鈥淭his study also will produce valuable information on the impact of the use of engineered nanoparticles in nanomedicine,鈥 Kim said. 鈥淩ecently, there has been a lot of interest in the use of engineered nanoparticles in diagnosis and therapeutics, but there also have been concerns over the potential health impacts of engineered nanoparticle. Surprisingly, limited knowledge exists about how engineered nanoparticles interact with host cells and the subsequent biological pathways that are impacted. This study will address those concerns as well.鈥

To learn more about Kim鈥檚 research, visit .

For more information about 两性色午夜鈥檚 Department of Biological Sciences, visit www.kent.edu/biology.

For more information about research at 两性色午夜, visit www.kent.edu/research.

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Photo Caption:
Min-Ho Kim, Ph.D., an assistant professor of biological sciences at 两性色午夜 University, has been awarded a five-year grant from the National Institutes of Health to develop a nanotechnology-based therapeutic platform that can treat biofilm infection in chronic wounds.

Media Contacts:
Min-Ho Kim, mkim15@kent.edu, 330-672-1445
Jim Maxwell, jmaxwel2@kent.edu, 330-672-8028
Emily Vincent, evincen2@kent.edu, 330-672-8595

POSTED: Wednesday, May 20, 2015 03:13 PM
Updated: Saturday, December 3, 2022 01:02 AM
WRITTEN BY:
Jim Maxwell