School of Dentistry seminar series: Nanomaterials based on metal and metal oxide for theranostics of diseases – A/Prof Hang Ta

This seminar will discuss: The need for efficient and biocompatible treatment methods that can simultaneously deliver imaging and therapeutic agents for combined diagnosis and therapy have resulted in the development of theranostic nanoparticles in recent times.

Nanotheranostics represent one of the last frontiers in precision medicine and provide real-time information about drug biodistribution, release, and targeted treatment in vivo. Iron oxide offers magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) capability. Cerium oxide provides antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects. The incorporation of either gold or silver onto the nanoparticles not only provides photoacoustic imaging capability but also allows photothermal therapy. We have developed various hybrid theranostic nanomaterials based on metal and metal oxide such as iron oxide, cerium oxide, gold, and silver for diagnosis and treatment of diseases such as thrombosis, cancer and inflammatory diseases. Hybrid iron oxide/cerium oxide nanoparticles showed excellent theranostic property in a liver inflammation mouse model and in a subcutaneous cancer model. MRI was successfully employed to monitor the delivery of the materials and detect the tumor. Triggered by 808nm laser light, the nanoparticles induced excellent thrombolysis effect and restored blood flow in the clotted artery. The laser was also employed successfully to activate photothermal apoptosis of cancer cells, resulted in the elimination of tumor. While exhibiting excellent clot lysis and anti-tumor capability, these materials did not show any systemic adverse effects.

About the speaker

Dr Hang Ta is a Heart Foundation Future Leader Fellow and Associate Professor at the School of Environment and Science and Queensland Micro- and Nanotechnology Centre, Griffith University, and leads a team of 12 students and postdocs working on nanomaterials for diagnosis and treatment of life-threatening diseases. A/Prof Ta obtained her PhD in biomaterials for drug delivery from the University of Melbourne and then worked at Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute and University of Queensland before moving to Griffith University in 2020. Awarded a number of prizes, grants and prestigious fellowships such as National Heart Foundation postdoctoral fellowship, NHMRC ECR fellowship and Heart Foundation Future Leader Fellowship, A/Prof Ta has secured over $5.1 million ($3.6 million as lead investigator) in competitive grant funding from national funding agencies for both discovery and infrastructure projects. She is Associate Editor of Artificial Cells, Nanomedicine and Biotechnology and serves on the committees of various scientific societies and national grant review panels (e.g. ARC, NHMRC).

This seminar will be held at the Oral Health Centre Auditorium and on Zoom at https://uqz.zoom.us/j/85395280602 and will be recorded.