澳大新語 • 2023 UMAGAZINE 27 44 專題探討 • TOPIC INSIGHT A team of researchers at the University of Macau (UM) has developed an innovative technology that combines nanoparticles, bacterial membranes, and immune cells to deliver drugs directly to tumours to attack cancerous cells. Led by Wang Ruibing, a supramolecular chemist and associate professor at UM’s Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences (ICMS) and State Key Laboratory of Quality Research in Chinese Medicine, the team seeks to bring about more effective and personalised cancer treatments at a lower cost. Supramolecular Smart Biomaterials Improve Targeted Drug Delivery Since joining UM as a faculty member in 2014, Prof Wang has brought a wealth of experience in supramolecular chemistry, supramolecular biomaterials, radiopharmaceuticals, and molecular bioimaging to the university. Elected a fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry in 2020, Prof Wang studies how molecules interact with each other and assemble themselves through non-covalent bonding, which creates simple yet smart structures with unique biological properties. He describes these structures, known as supramolecular molecules, as ‘molecules holding hands’. Through studying supramolecular chemistry, scientists have developed molecular structures for various needs, such as medicines and healthcare products. Hunting Down Solid Tumour Tissue According to Prof Wang, some anti-cancer drugs are often absorbed by non-cancerous tissues and cells before they reach their intended target, which can lead to unwanted side effects and provide limited therapeutic benefit to the patient. To address this issue, scientists have developed various methods to deliver drugs and nanomedicines to tumours. One approach is to use the patient’s own cells that cancer tissues tend to attract. These cells are extracted from the patient’s body, modified or infused with drugs in a sterile environment, and then reintroduced into the body to help destroy cancer cells via targeted drug delivery. However, this method is often costly, time-consuming, and carries the risk of cell contamination outside the body. In search of a better solution, Prof Wang’s team has developed a technique that enables nanomedicines to ‘hitch a ride’ on macrophages in the body. In this way, nanomedicines can reach cancer cells by taking advantage of the innate ability of macrophages, which are a type of immune cells, to migrate to and accumulate in areas of inflammation in the body, a process known as inflammatory tropism. In essence, the team has developed a supramolecular nanomedicine that uses a macrocyclic compound called β-cyclodextrin (β-CD) as the host molecule and adamantane (Ada) as the guest molecule to modify, respectively, the surface of gold-nanoparticles (GNPs), which are used commonly in cancer therapy and diagnosis. To create the supramolecular nanomedicine, the researchers coated the β-CD-modified GNPs and the Ada-modified GNPs with the membrane of E. coli outer membrane vesicles. This membrane serves as a protective barrier that prevents the GNPs from prematurely interacting with each other via β-CD-Ada host-guest interactions before they are administered to a patient. In addition, the E. coli membrane coating makes this nanomedicine ‘bacteria-mimetic’. Once intravenously injected into the patient’s body, the E. coli-mimetic nanoparticles are engulfed by macrophages. The membranes of E. coli are then broken down 王瑞兵教授的研究團隊於2022年粵港澳大灣區高價值專利培育佈局大賽獲 頒銀獎 Prof Wang Ruibing’s research team was awarded a silver medal at the 2022 Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area High-value Patent Portfolio Layout Competition
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