Nanoneuro

The general aim of the nanoneuro project is to use the technological advances in the field of nanoscience to develop novel technologies for neurosciences and biomedical applications. In other fields of biology, nanoscale materials have already proved significant capabilities as biosensors and bioactuators with nanoscale spatial resolution. Nevertheless, the use of nanoscale technologies in neurosciences is still in its infancy as a scientific field, and it is full of opportunities to make major contributions in the future.

In this line of research, we aim to study and manipulate neural activity using nanoparticles (NPs). Preliminary results demonstrated the viability of using plasmonic NPs (primarily gold) for neuronal photo-modulation and quantum dots to monitor the change of action potential under an external stimulus. Nevertheless, these promising seminal studies were carried out using NPs not specifically designed for this purpose, and the delivery and positioning of the nanostructures were achieved using generic chemical strategies. Our project proposes to design and fabricate NPs specifically engineered for neuroscience applications and to deliver them to specific ion channels on the neuron membrane using click chemistry-aided bioorthogonal surface functionalization. We will test its functioning in in-vitro, ex-vivo, and in-vivo experiments.