Project description
Precision cancer treatment
Photodynamic therapy (PDT) is a minimally invasive cancer treatment that combines light from a laser with photosensitising dyes to kill cancer cells. The photochemical reactions lead to the generation of reactive oxygen species which causes apoptosis of cancer cells. Despite its promise, PDT has seen limited progress, with only a few dyes approved for clinical use. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the TADF-PDT project will introduce a new class of dyes based on thermally-activated delayed fluorescence (TADF). These efficient TADF materials will be delivered using biocompatible extracellular vesicles, offering a next-generation strategy for safer, more targeted cancer treatment.
Objective
Photodynamic Therapy (PDT) is a non-invasive cancer treatment that uses light-activated, photosensitising dyes to generate highly reactive oxygen species (ROS) within a localised biological environment, leading to the destruction of cancer cells, while sparing surrounding healthy tissue. The PDT process comprises two stages: administration of a dye, followed by irradiation with light. Since ROS is only generated at the light-activated sites, tissue destruction is highly localised and side effects are significantly reduced. The potential for PDT is clear. However, for all this potential, widespread adoption has stagnated: only three dyes have been approved for cancer treatment globally, while the dye most commonly studied in clinical trials - Photofrin - is a statistical mixture of oligomeric porphyrins. Dye design for many years has focussed on porphyrins derived from Photofrin, and more recently phosphorescent ruthenium(II) polypyridyl complexes. However, in this proposal, a new design strategy is proposed: thermally-activated delayed fluorescence (TADF) dyes are the targets of interest. These are all-organic compounds that have small singlet-triplet energy gaps, which causes them to undergo rapid intersystem crossing and reverse intersystem crossing between the singlet and triplet states. By accessing the triplet state, they can readily generate singlet oxygen, which is one form of ROS, marking their potential for PDT. These compounds have been widely used organic device applications, but their uses in biological applications such as imaging and particularly PDT are much less. This proposal addresses this gap, using novel, cationic, near-IR emitting, TADF dyes. Their delivery to cells will be achieved using biocompatible, Extracellular Vesicles (EVs), which have been shown to be improved PDT delivery agents over other methods.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine oncology
- engineering and technology nanotechnology nano-materials
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
MAIN PROGRAMME
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01
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Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.
OX1 2JD Oxford
United Kingdom
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.