"Development and Preclinical Validation of biofunctionalized Nanoparticles for targeted delivery of anti-thrombotic and anti-oxidant factors to treat Atherosclerosis"
Τ2ΕΔΚ-00563
Coordination of LTFN
Duration: 24 months (2020-2022)
www.nanoathero.gr
Despite myriad advances and considerable progresses that have been made in prevention and treatment, cardiovascular diseases continue to remain our greatest health problem in the western world killing 18 million people each year. The underlying pathology is atherosclerosis that can gradually lead to the formation of atherosclerotic plaques, artery stenosis, and clinically can be manifested by acute coronary syndrome. In particular, the eruption of a "vulnerable atherosclerotic plaque" characterized by high inflammation and increased oxidative stress causes 75% of all heart attacks, especially among young people, which poses as a modern medical challenge, the early detection of these plaques and their effective treatment. To address these issues, NANOATHERO project, characterized by an interdisciplinarity, aims to the exploitation of Nanotechnology tools in order to overcome the limitation of existing cardiovascular approaches. "Smart" biodegradable nanoparticles (BNPs) for site-specific treatment of unstable plaques will introduce a unique approach towards the treatment of atherosclerosis, while the successful encapsulation of anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidant drugs and anti-thrombotic agents into the nanoparticles’ core will enduce their active performance composing novel targeted drug delivery nanosystems. Innovative anti-thrombotic agents will be synthesized with Protein Engineering, for the treatment of atherothrombosis. Through the appropriate bio-functionalisation, these biodegradable and biocompatible nanoparticles can target inflammatory areas of the arterial wall, that overexpress in patients with cardiovascular disease. After thorough toxicology analysis, preclinical validation in in-vitro atherosclerotic models and animal studies, the clinical application of these nanoproducts will be tested. In addition, innovative vascular and in vitro atherosclerotic models for BNPs permeability/transport experiments, will be developed to reduce the necessity of extensive animal testing. Among others, the optimal drug delivery nanosystem, will be chosen for animal testing of a small group of animals, to study their safety and the quality of their therapeutic effect on atherosclerotic vulnerable plaque’s areas. The final product will be an advanced and innovative nanostructured drug delivery system that obtains a perfectly premise of nanocarriers for clinical studies. The potentials of NANOATHERO are numerous: At first, it will yield a vehicle for fundamental research in life sciences, which will facilitate the study of biological barriers, as well as the factors that determine the biological fate of nanoparticles, whilst, it will help in the development of novel in-vitro models for use in toxicology and nanomedicines screening. In addition, the mission of the PI and the cooperative organizations is to integrate Nanotechnology into clinical and transcriptional cardiology research and to introduce new approaches, to address the clinical hurdles in the treatment of atherosclerosis and other chronic diseases. As a result, the project will cross the boundaries of research fields and will introduce innovative technologies to combat atherosclerosis by exploiting Nanomedicine tools. The prototype therapeutic nanosystems with innovative properties for the targeting and treatment of atherosclerotic plaques will have an advanced therapeutic effect beyond common clinical practice, greatly improving the quality of life of the patients. The multidisciplinary nature of the participating organizations (3 companies and university) that conduct pioneering research to develop new products, will create research excellence, knowledge transfer and specialization in Nanomedicine field, as well as, innovative products ready for commercialization. NANOATHERO will remarkably contribute to the improvement of the quality of life of Greek & European citizens, it will boost the competitiveness of industry in Greece and it will enable Greeks to master and shape future developments in diagnostics and nano-therapeutics issues, in order to through bridge across the needs of society and the economy in general.