UNISS Nanomedicine Laboratory

The Nanomedicine Laboratory (LNM), which is part of the “Drug Design and Nanomedicine Laboratory” of the Chemistry and Pharmacy Department of the University of Sassari, is incorporated within the research sector for the ​​”Design and development of drugs and nanomedicine”. This sector develops new molecule prototypes of pharmaceutical interest and functionalised nanosystems aimed at specific biological targets.

The research topics envisage the use of multidisciplinary approaches relevant to medicinal chemistry and nanobiotechnology, with the aim of achieving synergy in the management of a variety of problems in the medical field. Particular attention is paid to the design and development of polymeric and inorganic nanosystems capable of interacting intelligently and releasing chemopreventive or chemotherapeutic agents at a subcellular level (or performing diagnostic or theranostic functions) for the treatment of various types of tumours.

Innovative nanoprototypes, designed with molecular hooks and programmable features, are able to specifically target diseased cells while preserving healthy cells, in order to increase the therapeutic efficacy and bioavailability of the active ingredients they carry or optimise their effectiveness as diagnostic probes.

Several of the projects currently underway are conducted with funding from the Region of Sardinia, under Law 7/2007, and involve multidisciplinary collaboration with Italian researchers from national research institutions and universities (Porto Conte Ricerche, CNR-SS, UNISS, UniPR, UniFI and UniGE), and with foreign research centres such as the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the University of Southern California and the Institute for Medical Research, KU Leuven.

Skills and technologies

• Design and development of suitably functionalised nanostructured systems able to interact selectively with various molecular targets on tumour cells (or other biological targets) and to release active ingredients in a targeted manner
• Development of nanomaterials for medical applications
• Development of diagnostic and teranostic nanosystems.