AME - Nanoparticle Carriers for Novel Anti-Leishmania Chemotherapeutics
Leishmaniasis is a grouping of diseases caused by the protozoan parasites Leishmania spp., affecting 12 million people per year, with almost 350 million people at risk. Therefore, the WHO has declared leishmaniasis a Category I Neglected Tropical Disease. Leishmaniasis has a range of clinical manifestations, from self-healing skin lesions to hepatomegaly to fatality. Current anti-leishmania chemotherapeutics are limited by disease resistance, high off-target toxicity and low solubility. Therefore, we are investigating nanoparticle carriers for targeted delivery of a novel, hydrophobic small molecule chemotherapeutics. Students on this project will investigate nanoparticle synthesis and surface functionalization, drug loading and release, and in vitro cytotoxicity. This project is a collaboration with the McDowell Lab in Biological Sciences.