Nanotechnology-based Biomedical Systems
Guofang Chen, St. John’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Department of Chemistry
Abstract: The research in our lab focuses on the fabrication and characterization of polymeric nanostructures including nanoparticles, nanotubes, porous nanopillars, nanograsses and nanofibres, and the development of practical applications of these new materials in biomedicine and sensors. With inspiration from the wealth of photonic structures found in Nature, photonic crystals were fabricated based on polymeric nanoparticles via spin-coating method or inside microfluidic channels, which produce beautifully iridescent blue, green and red colors. Such photonic crystals will be used to detect clinically important analytes and markers of disease. The signaling response utilizes the Bragg diffraction of light by an array of colloidal particles. Furthermore, controlled drug-delivery systems have already had an enormous impact on medical technology with the unlimited potential to improve human health. An important prerequisite for designing an efficient controlled delivery system is the ability to transport the drug molecules with “zero release” to the targeted site and release them in the controlled manner at the targeted site. To meet this end, a novel stimuli-responsive nanotube/porous nanopillar-based drug delivery system was designed to enhance drug loading capacity, site-specifically transport to the targeted cells, and sustain drug release in response to physiological changes.