Project Grant R35GM155275

This $373,375 Project Grant awarded by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (NIGMS) under the Biomedical Research and Research Training program (CFDA 93.859) supports research to better understand the interactions between ultra-small nanoparticles and myeloid cells, and how myeloid cell recruitment can be leveraged to improve the targeting of nanotherapeutics to sites of inflammation. The 5-year project, led by researchers at the University of Florida, aims to: 1) determine the mechanisms governing nanoparticle-myeloid cell interactions, including how the nanoparticle protein corona influences interactions with myeloid cells; 2) investigate how myeloid cell recruitment mediates the targeting of nanoparticles carrying different payloads to sites of inflammation; and 3) use this knowledge to develop a translatable nanotherapeutic that selectively delivers an immune modulator to target inflammatory monocytes and reduce immunosuppression. The research is expected to provide fundamental insights into nanoparticle-myeloid cell interactions and have broad implications for improving the in vivo targeting, biodistribution, and therapeutic efficacy of nanomedicines.