The Design of Nanoparticle Contrast Agents for
Environmentally-Sensitive Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Amber Doiron, PhD, Assistant professor of biomedical engineering, Binghamton
University
ABSTRACT
Current efforts in magnetic resonance imaging are limited by an inability to characterize the
functional state of disease. My research attempts to overcome this limitation by creating
nanoparticles with imaging properties that are activated only in the presence of disease
processes. These contrast agents have particular application in detecting atherosclerosis.
Atherosclerosis accounts for thirty percent of worldwide deaths and brings a financial burden
greater than all cancers combined, an estimated $300 billion per year in the United States. The
key to lessening the burden and limiting the vast number of deaths is to determine which
patients are at highest risk so they can be medically treated to prevent heart attack, stroke, and
death. Our lab’s research is aimed at filling the void in our clinical ability to assess patient risk
for heart attack and stroke by optimizing a contrast agent capable of functionally determining
plaque severity with an ‘on-switch’ triggered by a critical process known as oxidative stress. The
contrast agent becomes visible on the MR image when superoxides present during oxidative
stress disassemble the polymer coating that up until that point had masked the contrast agent.
We plan to extend our in vitro results to in vivo studies of disease and hope to advance the field
towards more accurate assessment of plaque severity via a functionally-based contrast
mechanism and improved patient health.
BIOGRAPHY
Amber Doiron’s research interests lie in molecular imaging, drug delivery and nanotoxicity. Her
lab uses nanoparticles in several capacities, studies their properties and works to understand
their impact on the human body. She has three central thrusts for this research:
Molecular imaging: Current clinical imaging of atherosclerosis relies on plaque size as a
measure of severity, yet the two are poorly correlated. Doiron has developed nanoparticles that
can target molecular indicators of plaque severity such as the presence of inflammatory
mediators, macrophages and oxidative stress.
Drug delivery: Doiron’s lab creates polymeric nanoparticles to combat the problem of surfaceassociated bacterial communities (biofilms) that pose significant problems in medicine. Recent
evidence suggests that biofilms require
a specific metabolite for growth and maintenance of the bio lm structure. Doiron aims to develop
a nanoparticle capable of delivering an enzyme that breaks down the metabolite as a treatment
strategy for bio lm-related infections.
th
8 Annual NYS Biotechnology Symposium
- May 19 & 20, 2016 -
Nanotoxicity: With the rapid expansion of nanoparticle use in research, manufacturing and
consumer products, it’s important to understand the risk of nanoparticle exposure to human
health. Doiron’s lab uses in vitro mimics of the vascular endothelium, a critical barrier between
blood flow and body tissues, to determine nanoparticle uptake in living systems.
Doiron, who earned a doctorate in biomedical engineering from the University of Texas at
Austin, completed a post- doctoral fellowship in radiology and chemical engineering at the
University of Calgary in Alberta, Canada. She was also the chief scientific officer at NanoPulse
Biosciences in Massachusetts for four years.
th
8 Annual NYS Biotechnology Symposium
- May 19 & 20, 2016 -