Objective
In the last 5 years I have been working on the study of nanoscopic vesicles formed by the assembly in water of amphiphilic block copolymers. These polymer vesicles also known as polymersomes can be designed with size, topology and morphology similar to natural viruses. The synthetic nature of copolymers allows the design of interfaces with various classes of biochemically-active functional groups. This, in combination with precise control over the molecular architecture, determines the degree of order in self-organizing polymeric materials. Such bio-inspired ‘bottom-up’ supramolecular design principles can offer outstanding advantages in engineering structures at a molecular level, using the same long–studied principles of biological molecules. It is self-evident that the highly biocompatible nature of these new amphiphilic copolymer assemblies augurs well for biomedical applications. Indeed, related polymeric micelles and vesicles have already been reported and studied as delivery systems for drugs, gene, and image contrast agents. Herein I propose to engineer new generations of polymersomes whose size, topology, surface chemistry is exquisitely controlled by supramolecular interactions with the aim to control their bioactivity and explore new ways to target specific biological sites via multi-fictionalisation and steric controlled binding. This will be achieved by a balanced combination of novel physico-chemical techniques with tailor-made biological evaluation based on state-of-the-art cell culture methods as well as in vitro and in vivo high content screening. My long-term aim is to set-up new design principles for nanoparticles for biomedical applications together with a thorough biomedical fast screening that will enable safe and fast translation into the clinic as well as benchmarking nanotoxicological methodologies.
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.
- natural sciences biological sciences microbiology virology
- natural sciences biological sciences biochemistry biomolecules
- natural sciences mathematics pure mathematics topology
- natural sciences chemical sciences polymer sciences
- engineering and technology other engineering and technologies microtechnology molecular engineering
You need to log in or register to use this function
We are sorry... an unexpected error occurred during execution.
You need to be authenticated. Your session might have expired.
Thank you for your feedback. You will soon receive an email to confirm the submission. If you have selected to be notified about the reporting status, you will also be contacted when the reporting status will change.
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.
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.
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.
ERC-2011-StG_20101014
See other projects for this call
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.
Host institution
WC1E 6BT LONDON
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.