A project dedicated to study and understand the extracellular vesicles intrinsic targeting capabilities in the case of tumor metastases, to take inspiration from their functioning mechanims and treat a rare bone disease.
Being able to target a specific tissue or cell type is a fundamental challenge of targeted therapies such as drug delivery. Nature offers examples of selective targeting, such as cancer metastasis. Specific types of cancer metastasize selectively in determined organs, showing the ability of cancer to recognize and target tissue-specific features, thanks to intrinsic capabilities of extracellular vesicles.
MIMIC-KeY project will create artificial nanoparticles mimicking extracellular vesicles to obtain the capability to target a specific tissue. In particular, it takes inspiration from two cancer diseases that create metastasis in bone tissues: prostate cancer and multiple myeloma, with the objective of designing nanoparticles to transport and deliver drugs to fight a rare lysosomal metabolic bone diseases, pycnodysostosis. This disease is due to the lack of a specific enzyme and current treatments, based on the enzyme replacement therapies or new drug developments are ineffective because of frequent off-target effects and toxicity.
The project will achieve this important knowledge and technology objectives through the collaborative work of an international and multidisciplinary consortium of partners, with competences in bioengineering, biophysics, chemistry, modelling, biology and translational medicine. The study will include an initial phase of testing the possible therapy.
Impact on society
MIMICK-KEY will bring new methods to realize nature inspired and mimetic bioparticles and their functionalities, with an important potential impact in the field of pharmaceutical industry and nanomedicine.
