Over Nanotechnology: Potential, Advances and Challenges in Cancer Research

Nanotechnology: Potential, Advances and Challenges in Cancer Research

Avondlezing door dr. Kristina Djanashvili georganiseerd door de Chemische Kring Midden Nederland.

Samenvatting
Cancer is one of the most devastating diseases, with the number of patients worldwide increasing every year. Thanks to the widespread use of screening nowadays, diagnoses are being made more and more at an earlier stage. This results in a good long-term prognosis for patients, which in turn calls for therapies that are not only effective, but also ensure minimal side effects.

An ideal treatment would be a minimally invasive, real-time, image-guided intervention. To achieve this, scientists are committed to developing new materials at both molecular and nano levels. One of the promising strategies in this field is the design of theranostic agents, that is, materials that combine therapeutic and diagnostic components in one formulation.

This lecture will provide an overview of some promising nanotechnological concepts and demonstrate their potential in oncology.

Curriculum vitae:
CKMN-DjanashviliKristina Djanashvili has started her scientific carrier at Delft University of Technology as NMR researcher. After receiving of her PhD in chemistry in 2009 (Cum Laude and Delft Women in Science (DEWIS) award for the best female PhD candidate) in the field of MRI contrast agents, she continued her research as a member of the Department of Biotechnology of the same university.

After a postdoctoral period, in 2011 she took up a position of Assistant Professor, and subsequently, became Associate Professor in 2019. Furthermore, she is head of the interdepartmental NMR facility.

In 2012, she received a prestigious VENI-grant within the Talent Programme of the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) for the research on nanoparticles for cancer imaging and therapy. This research line was continued in one of the recent projects supported by NWO on the development of image-guided thermo-brachytherapy of breast cancer together with Radiation Science & Technology Department and Erasmus MC in Rotterdam.

Dr. Djanashvili is a member of European Society for Molecular Imaging (ESMI), where she is co-chairing Chemistry Study Group and is a scientific evaluator for yearly European Molecular Imaging Meetings (EMIM). Over the years, she has been a management committee member of several Actions of European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST), incl. the latest two on Theranostics Imaging and Therapy and Bimodal PET-MRI Molecular Imaging Technologies. At the TU Delft, she is coordinating health related research as a board member of Delft Health Initiative (DHI).

Dr. Djanashvili has published over 65 papers in high-impact peer-reviewed scientific journals and has written several scientific book chapters. Over the last 15 years, she has supervised 8 PhD students, 5 postdocs and many MSc/BSc students. Furthermore, she is chair of the Board of Examiners for the Life Science and Technology master’s curriculum and is as a PhD mentor within the Graduate School of the Faculty of Applied Sciences.

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