Nanotechnology has the potential to reinvent healthcare for the next generation. Stopping disease and illness before their outset is the end goal: the properties of nanotechnology can be exploited to provide preventative healthcare. There are three key areas: Diagnosis, Prevention and Treatment.
Setting research priorities not only includes funding the best science, it also entails reflecting on the different potential outcomes for society. Considering the wider context ensures that nanotechnologies have a positive impact on our lives. Public engagement is the key to nanotechnology having the greatest impact on healthcare.
More so than other priority areas, nanotechnology in healthcare has the potential to transform life; from which diseases are prioritised and who gains access to treatments, to altering our understanding of what it is to be human, through the use of novel technologies for enhancement.
For this reason it was decided that in building the scope for this area, it would be beneficial to accompany academic community consultations with a public dialogue exercise. This gave a clear indication of public aspirations and clarified the types of technology that the public favoured most. It resulted in the focus for this area being nanotechnologies for targeted delivery of therapeutic agents and nanotechnologies for healthcare diagnostics.
The first stage of this process is underway and 10 research projects are being supported with grants worth £15.5 million.
Projects:
Point of care nanotechnology for early blood clot detection and characterisation in disease screening, theranostic and self monitoring applications.
Bio-functional Magnetic Nanoparticles: Novel High-Efficiency Targeting Agents for Localised Treatment of Metastatic Cancers.
Detecting infectious organisms: A concerted approach using genomics, molecular engineering and nano-enabled bio-MEMS technologies (AptaMEMS-ID).
Silicon Nanowire Arrays for Viral Infection Markers.
Multi-marker Nanosensors for HIV.
Engineering Virus-like Nanoparticles for Targeting the Central Nervous System.
New imaging methods for the detection of cancer biomarkers.
Nanoparticles for the targeted delivery of therapeutic agents to the brain for the treatment of dementias.
Non-attrition HAART nanoparticle therapies for HIV/AIDS drug delivery.
Technologies for the treatment of brain diseases.