Nanostructures for Diagnosis and Therapy of Alzheimer's Disease

NU 2009-169 

Inventors

Vinayak Dravid* 

Saurabh Sharma 

Kristen Viola 

William Klein* 

Short Description

Novel magnetic nanostructures that recognize toxic beta-amyloid protein oligomers responsible for Alzheimer's disease progression

Abstract

Northwestern University researchers have developed a new magnetic nanostructure that can be used to detect and destroy beta-amyloid protein oligomers, which are a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease. The magnetic nanostructures can be used for imaging, as the nanoparticle acts as an MRI contrast agent. Furthermore, the nanoparticles can be activated by exposure to radiofrequency, and have been shown to release heat and inactivate the beta-amyloid oligomers without damage to the neurons. The antibody conjugated to the nanoparticle confers the specificity of the nanostructures. Therefore, this same therapeutic and diagnostic method could be applied to other diseases with the modification of the antibody type. Most importantly, the nanostructures can be synthesized in a single step process, which makes them an extremely attractive diagnostic and therapeutic reagent. 

Applications

• Thermal activation therapy for AD
• Imaging for AD diagnosis
• Imaging and therapy for other CNS disorders

Advantages

• Non-invasive imaging procedure
• Combined therapeutic and diagnostic modalities
• Specific for amyloid oligomers
• Simple to synthesize

Publications

Shekawat G, Lambert M, Sharma S, Velasco P, Viola K, Klein W, Dravid V (2009) Soluble state high-resolution atomic force microscopy study of Alzheimer's beta-amyloid oligomers. Applied Physics Letters. 95(18): 183701. 

Joshi H, De M, Ku K, Barick K, Aslam M, Sharma S, Tomita T, Dravid V (2010) Magnetic Nanostructures (MNS) in Biomedicine: Role of Size, Shape and Composition. Polymer Preprints.  51(1): 34-35. 

IP Status

Issued US Patent Nos. 9,095,629 and 9,801,952