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H2020Staff exchange2017–2023

MAGNAMED · Novel magnetic nanostructures for medical applications

Horizon 2020 — Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions

Duration
2017-04-01 → 2023-05-31
EU contribution
€846,000
Participants
18
Scheme
MSCA-RISE

Lines connect the coordinator with its partners.

Results in brief

Novel magnetic nanostructures for medical applications

Cancer is one of the main causes of death in Europe. Early-stage detection and effective treatment are keystones to reducing cancer mortality. Current clinical procedures fail to detect small amounts of tumoral biomarkers (molecules that appear in higher concentrations in patients with disease). For some kinds of cancer, tumors are detected at advanced stages when aggressive and conventional treatments are not effective. Moreover, existing cancer treatments like chemotherapy are not selective and destroy both healthy and unhealthy cells. Thus, the development of high-sensitive instruments able to detect cancer at a very initial stage and localized treatments that act on tumoral cells only would have an important impact to cure and reduce the effects of this disease in society. MAGNAMED proposes a novel approach to improve the detection limits of cancer biomarkers and a remote actuation to selectively annihilate cancer cells in-vitro experiments. Both strategies are based on magnetic nanostructures, elements that look like magnetic coins smaller than one micron. On the one hand, these nanocoins, functionalized with the tumoral biomarker to be detected, can provide a high signal in magnetic-based sensors, which can detect small amounts of analyte. On the other hand, the nanocoins oscillate with a magnetic field. The oscillation of the nanostructures attached to the membrane of a cancer cell will produce its death. This remote action only affects cells loaded with nanostructures and keeps safe the rest of the tissue.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

MAGNAMED designs, fabricates, and assesses novel magnetic nanostructures (MNS) with unique spin configurations for innovative diagnostics and therapy techniques. An early stage detection and an effective treatment are keystones to reduce cancer mortality. Current clinical procedures fail to detect small concentration of tumoral biomarkers. Magnetic nanoparticles (MNP), like beads, have attracted much attention for their capability to improve cancer detection limits and treatment technologies. However, there are several limitations to the use of MNP. As an emerging alternative, MNS are being explored. Unlike MNP, MNS (e.g. nanodisks) present a planar shape with novel properties for diagnosis: high magnetic moment and large size, which can significantly improve the sensor sensitivity, and for therapy: due to their planar shape, alternate magnetic fields provoke a magneto-mechanical action on the cell membrane that triggers cell death. The efficiency of MNS in these two medical applications has not been investigated yet for MNS at the nanometer scale. The challenge of this project is to produce MNS with nanometer dimensions suitable for medical applications. Several lithography techniques will be used to fabricate MNS in vortex and antiferromagnetic spin configurations covering a broad size range (40 to 4000 nm). After functionalization, MNS will be exploited in: (i) Diagnostics, using giant magnetoresistance (GMR) sensors for the detection of tumoral biomarkers (dermcidin and carcinoembryonic antigen), and (ii) Therapy, effectiveness of tumoral cell annihilation by the magneto-mechanical action of MNS will be evaluated in vitro assays of melanoma and colorectal cancer cells. MAGNAMED is a cross-sectoral and interdisciplinary project involving Physics, Chemistry and Medicine. Findings will have a medium-term impact on the European strategy for early stage detection of cancer and a long-term impact on the development of novel and groundbreaking therapeutics techniques.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

  • UNIVERSIDAD DEL PAIS VASCO/ EUSKAL HERRIKO UNIBERTSITATEA · LeioaCoordinatorSpain
  • AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS · MadridSpain
  • COMISION NACIONAL DE ENERGIA ATOMICA · BUENOS AIRESArgentina
  • COMISSAO NACIONAL DE ENERGIA NUCLEAR- CENTRO DE DESENVOLVIMENTO DA TECNOLOGIA NUCLEAR · Rio De JaneiroBrazil
  • ICETA INSTITUTO DE CIENCIAS, TECNOLOGIAS E AGROAMBIENTE DA UNIVERSIDADE DO PORTO · PortoPortugal
  • IMG PHARMA BIOTECH SOCIEDAD LIMITADA · DerioSpain
  • INESC MICROSISTEMAS E NANOTECNOLOGIAS - INSTITUTO DE ENGENHARIA DE SISTEMAS E COMPUTADORES PARA OS MICROSISTEMAS E AS NANOTECNOLOGIAS · LisboaPortugal
  • NANOVEX BIOTECHNOLOGIES SL · LlaneraSpain
  • THE REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA · OaklandUnited States
  • THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS SYSTEM · AustinUnited States
  • UNIVERSIDAD COMPLUTENSE DE MADRID · MadridSpain
  • UNIVERSIDAD DE LOS ANDES FUNDACION · Bogota DcColombia
  • UNIVERSIDAD DE SANTIAGO DE CHILE · SantiagoChile
  • UNIVERSIDAD DE TALCA · TalcaChile
  • UNIVERSIDAD TECNICA FEDERICO SANTA MARIA · ValparaisoChile
  • UNIVERSIDADE DO PORTO · PortoPortugal
  • UNIVERSIDADE ESTADUAL DE CAMPINAS · Campinas SpBrazil
  • VIENNA BIOCENTER CORE FACILITES GMBH · WienAustria

Links

Data: CORDIS, © European Union